Leggo My Ego!
by OffCenterFold
Summary: Even a self-proclaimed recluse can get tired of living completely on his own. It's no easy thing to admit the passage of time - but is Hiko Seijuurou prepared for what even one day in Tokyo will bring? Explores a Sano-Megumi-Hiko triangle...
1. Chapter 1

_Prologue - Fat _

His reflection stared back at him. He leaned in closer, studying the fine lines that were beginning to deepen around his eyes and the corners of his mouth. He'd spotted a grey hair or two, the other day. And was his chin beginning to slacken just the tiniest bit? He tugged the skin at his jaw line.

"You're getting old," his reflection told him. "Your life is going to be a lot less comfortable for you if you don't start making provisions for your future."

"Shut up," he told it. But he knew it was right. He wasn't getting any younger, and he didn't really want to be the last of his line.

Now, in this era of peace, it was time for him to start concentrating on living after all, he decided. The time had come. And there were other concerns.

Sighing, he ignored the slight creak in his back as he moved away from the mirror. "Come on, old man."

Moving out to the front yard, he put himself though a rigorous workout. Despite the occasional ache, he felt no different than he had in years of fighting and practicing. His form was still excellent and deadly accurate. One had to be very close to tell that he looked any different from the way he had years before.

Six hours later, he sat down. Feeling a little winded, he began to get annoyed with his body. How could it betray him thus?

There had to be a way. Remembering a time some years ago how he'd learned something about devotion and love from a girl who had come seeking her beloved, only wishing to see him one more time...

He knew what to do, suddenly. It pained him immensely to have to stoop to that level, but he must contact his former student and seek his advice. How could he find a woman worthy of him, and inspire such mindless devotion? If that runty, stubborn little orphan could do it, surely it would be a breeze for he who had taught that former hitokiri.

He rose from the log, and went inside to his desk.

He began to write.

It grated him sorely, stooping to such a level. And though it grated him to admit it, it would not be the first lesson he'd have learned from Himura Kenshin.

[AN]Yes, the title of each chapter is also the title of a Weird Al song.[/AN]


	2. Chapter 2

_Part I - The Saga Begins _

Passersby stopped to stare at the large man sweeping past them on the streets. He was almost too tall, his hair almost too long, his features almost too sharp and hard. The immense cape he wore flowed out behind him dramatically, yet he wore it well, carrying himself like a true king. Yet he was alone, burdened with only the rather bulky sack on his back (which sloshed, if one listened closely enough) and the large jug of sake strapped to his arm.

He reached an intersection and sighed, looking around in frustration. He should have known better than to trust directions given by a wanderer, and he had every intention of letting the man know - just as soon as he found him.

A woman passing by caught his eye. She struck him as someone almost worthy of himself, beautiful and quick witted - he could tell by looking at her that she was intelligent. She carried a medical kit with her, and by the way she moved he knew at once she was well-bred. He called out to her. "Onnasensei!"

Dark hair not as long as his own cascaded down her back, blown lightly in the breeze and further moved by the turn of her head as she oriented on his voice. Cinnamon eyes narrowed briefly. "May I help you?"

He approached her, towering over her though she was no waif. Closer still, he could appreciate the shape of her mouth, her fair skin. She would make a worthy bride, he thought in passing, well able to support them both. He filed the thought away for future reference; he was only here to ask directions under the assumption that a doctor would know where everything was. "I was given terrible directions to find the Kamiya Dojo. Tell me how to get there."

At the mention of the dojo, however, the doctor's eyes widened in surprise, but suspicion narrowed them quickly. "What do you want with the Kamiya Dojo?"

"I'm looking for my baka deshi. You may have heard of him. Himura Kenshin." For good measure, the arrogant man flashed his best smile at the woman.

She seemed unimpressed. "What do you want with him?" If anything, she seemed more suspicious of him than before.

"I'm expected."

She studied him for a long moment. "I see." Indifferently she turned and walked away.

No one had ever treated him like THAT before. His jaw almost dropped the barest inch for almost an entire half-second before he recovered his composure and strode after her. "What do you -"

Without looking back or slowing down, and with a toss of her lustrous hair, the woman kept walking and cut him off mid sentence. "I'm going there myself. Follow me if you insist."

That was twice she'd left him with nothing to say; he took a long swig from the jar at his wrist without missing a step. There was something familiar about the woman; perhaps he'd seen her before. Whatever it was, he didn't think very highly of her. Who did she think she was anyway, to treat him like any old stranger? Lady physician or no, beautiful or not, he deserved far better than that.

"Is someone at the dojo unwell?"

The woman ahead of him snorted delicately. "That's simply a matter of definition," she said dryly.

The man nodded to himself. So no one was sick; that was good. He had no desire to be around disease. Even better, he'd learned something else: the woman doctor was not without humor.

He looked around, wondering how long it would take. He suspected the woman was leading him on a roundabout route. "Are we there yet?" he said, the impatience creeping into his voice.

"Almost," she said, but not before looking back over her shoulder at him in irritation.

A moment later she rounded a corner and approached a rather dilapidated compound. It was well lived in and cared for, but clearly money was a concern. He heard the sounds of preparation and practice coming from within its doors, and hmphed.

"Here," she said as she opened the doors.

A young man in his teens, was practicing in the yard under the guidance of a woman somewhat younger than the doctor. They were both wearing hakama and gi that showed signs of considerable wear. The building had clearly seen some repairs and renovation recently but had a long way to go. There did seem to be quite a few students, although none of them were in evidence at the time.

"Is this a dojo?" he asked incredulously. The woman doctor, sitting now on the porch, almost smiled but hid it behind her hand as the other woman bristled furiously.

"Hikosan, I don't care if you were Kenshin's shishou, or if you did save our lives back in Kyoto... You will not insult my dojo!" Kaoru looked as though she was considering breaking her bokken over his head.

"Oiy, Hikosan!" Yahiko kept his pace, calling his greeting with a grin. "Don't let the ugly toad scare you off."

He might have blocked it if he'd been a split second faster, but the exaggerated face he'd been pulling distracted him. Kaoru's bokken never hesitated in its repetitive flurry of blows over his head.

"I never have. Where is he, anyway?"

At that moment, Kenshin emerged from within, leading his toddling son by the hand. "At least you aren't trying to get this one back for the last visit," he smiled. Hiko glared at him, remembering how his former student had tried to sneak up behind him and attack while he'd been working on his pottery. Was it so many years ago? And why had Kenshin cut his hair?

"Little you know." Just then he looked around again, noticing the doctor was still there. "I suppose I should thank you for directing me properly. The directions I was given were, as usual, as useless as my student who gave them." Though he addressed the doctor the entire time, his last words were directed very pointedly at Kenshin.

"Shishou, you never follow directions anyway. What difference if the ones this one gave you were good or not?" Kenshin grumbled. Kaoru and Yahiko had drifted over in the meantime. Kaoru picked up Kenji who gurgled happily.

"Megumisan, did you bring any onigiri today?" Yahiko looked plaintively at the beautiful woman.

"I'm afraid not, Yahiko. Genzaisensei got to them before I could pack them up," she said.

"You gotta start sneaking around him. We haven't had your onigiri in too long," he grumbled. "You only visit once a year. Maybe you should make them here."

"Oiy, did the Kitsune bring anything to eat?" Sano entered the gates with a hopeful look.

Yahiko shook his head. "We're stuck with whatever Kenshin made, or we'll have to suffer through the toad's cooking," he sighed. "She has to start sneaking them past the old man or we're never gonna get any either."

Hiko watched the by-play with some interest. So, the woman doctor was named Megumi, and she seemed to be friends with the small group that lived here. Watching her surreptitiously, he noticed that she was watching Kenshin the same way. So, she was also in love with that stubborn student of his. What was wrong with her? She clearly deserved better than his idiot apprentice - who was, after all, a family man now. The woman Megumi obviously had so much to give, and deserved so much better than the redhead.

Which, of course, would be where he came in.

He took a swig of sake and sat on the porch as if he owned the place. Megumi moved over, making room for him on the steps as she knelt by one of the supports. Sano leaned on the wall behind her, chewing on a fish bone. "Tell me about it. Oiy, Kenshin, ain't ya gonna introduce me to this guy?"

"Oro... Suman de gozaru!" Hiko turned a sarcastic eyebrow on his former disciple. "Shishou, you didn't get to meet Sano in Kyoto. Hiko Seijuurou, Sagara Sanosuke is a good friend." The two men eyed each other, each forming an opinion that, if they'd compared, would have matched one another's closely.

"Takani Megumidono is a very skilled physician and a good friend as well. She runs a clinic in Aizu now but is here for her annual visit," Kenshin added. At that, Hiko actually rose and bowed graciously and formally to the startled woman.

"Hajimemashite. And I am glad to have been formally introduced," he added with another raised eyebrow in Kenshin's direction. "Please, don't bother getting up, sensei."

He didn't miss the gaping stares he was getting from Kenshin, Kaoru, and Yahiko. He just chose to ignore them.

She inclined her head, not entirely sure what he was about. Talk about sending mixed messages; to Megumi he seemed entirely too arrogant, but this sudden display of mannerliness towards her threw her off. "Hajimemashite," she returned the greeting almost automatically.

"So, what brings you here?" Sano asked. "I know Kenshin mentioned you were planning a visit but we expected you hours ago."

"That one can't give directions to save his life."

"Actually, Kenshin gives good directions," Yahiko chimed in. "If you remember to reverse everything," he grinned.

Kenshin gave the younger man a look that clearly told him what he could do with his comments.

Even Kaoru was laughing. "Kenshin, didn't you have refreshments ready for Hikosan?"

The erstwhile rurouni nodded and retreated into the kitchen.

"Kenshin mentioned you wanted to talk to him about something, but wouldn't say what," Yahiko addressed their visitor. "Do we get to go off and save the world again? It's been a while."

"I don't think I'd go that far, brat. It was only Japan we saved last time." Sano grinned at his young friend.

Yahiko shrugged. "Close enough."

The master of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu shook his head. "It's nothing like that. This time, it's personal," he said, looking up and away, as though it was too much for them to be aware of. "I wouldn't even have come to discuss it with Kenshin, except that it's too important to continue unaddressed. However, I believe a solution has presented itself."

Kenshin emerged with a tray at that moment, passing it around. "What is it?"

"The reason he's here," Sano said, rolling his eyes.

No sense in not telling them all the truth, especially since the situation had changed since he arrived. "I've come for a bride. When I arrived, I found one." Rising, he looked straight at Megumi.

"She will be my wife."

"Ororororo..." Kenshin looked as if he'd been beaten about the head again, and the others felt no less floored. Hiko Seijuurou wanted Megumi to be his wife?

Megumi's jaw dropped as she stared at the man. Sano was the first to recover.

"You intend, just like that, to marry the Kitsune? Are you nuts or just stupid?" The tall ex-gangster hid behind the curtain of his now-long hair.

He pretended not to notice how Megumi's glare, developed to focus on Hiko, turned on him.

"Granted, she can cook, and she does a decent job of healing and stuff, but she's... she's..."

Now it was him at whom the others turned their incredulous expressions. Suddenly he seemed at a loss for words.

"Do tell," Hiko invited dryly.

"Forget it," Sano muttered, suddenly intent on stuffing his face.

Another piece fell into place for the big man. So this loudmouth was in love with Megumi, was he? It was an interesting triangle - though perhaps it was more of a quadrangle, he mused. Sanosuke loved Megumi, who in spite of his marriage to Kaoru, seemed to harbor feelings for Kenshin. Still, she didn't seem to like the loudmouth that much, which ought to make it easier for him. Now all he had to do was convince her she deserved better than his baka deshi, who proved just how foolish he was by not having taken her for himself. All to his benefit, Hiko figured.

What he didn't take into account was just how much of a challenge it would be to convince her that he was worth taking care of. For that was his intention, after all; a bride was someone to bear children and care for her husband. If she could support them as well as look after their home and his needs, that was better yet, saving him the trouble of earning a steady living and giving him still more time to work on his pottery.

"Just what makes you think I'd marry you anyway? I don't know a thing about you." Megumi managed to keep her cool, though she was clearly on the edge of a major eruption. She seemed to be concentrating on the ends of her magnificent hair, but Kenshin could clearly see the tic of anger. "Nor do you know anything about me."

"I know enough." Hiko smiled, cranking up his best sparkle for her benefit. She didn't even seem to notice. He tried harder.

The Kenshingumi just stared at the both of them, unsure if they ought to be amused or afraid, so they settled for intrigued. "I'd wondered what would happen if they met," Yahiko confessed softly to Sano. "You shoulda seen him back at the Aoiya. Omasu and Ochika were way into him, with the show he put on. I'm kind of surprised that he'd just show up like this though."

"Yeah. It's been years since then - and he's never come to visit before. Besides, the Kitsune ain't into flashy guys. Wonder how long it'll take him to figure out? Hey, do you think we should tell him she thinks heavy drinkin's a major turnoff?"

"No way. Much more fun this way," Yahiko sniggered. "I gotta say the guy's too cool for words, but this is too funny to pass up."

"Look at that jerk, strikin' poses like she'd go for that!" Sano looked disgusted; Hiko was indeed all but flexing his muscles for her. Every line of his body said, "Look at me, I'm a hunk and you want me!" even when he wasn't consciously flaunting himself. The ex gangster was no more impressed than Yahiko or Kenshin, but they seemed interested next to Megumi. Kaoru, however, was another story.

"Still, you have to admit it's an impressive show," Kenshin added quietly.

"Impressive? What is wrong with her!" Kaoru demanded in a sharp whisper. "Hiko Seijuurou is interested in her and she couldn't care less! If I were her I'd be all over him!" Suddenly she blushed furiously. "Umm. I'm glad I'm not though," she blurted with a nervous look at Kenshin, who hardly seemed to have noticed. Kenji squirmed out of her suddenly uncomfortable grip and toddled over to Sanosuke, who picked the child up without seeming to notice that he was upside down. Kenji laughed and flailed happily in Sanosuke's grip as the man continued to feign oblivion.

"What's wrong with me is, I'm not so easily swayed by an oversized ego and a bunch of big muscles. Big muscles just take more stitches," she said offhandedly. "And I don't have patience for this nonsense," she added to Hiko. "I won't marry some drunk off the street, even if you did teach Kensan everything he knows. My guess is, he learned better than you could ever have taught." With a toss of lustrous, long black hair, she rose and gathered up her medicine bag. "Now if you'll excuse me, I promised Genzaisensei I'd not be long."

"May I escort you?" Hiko said smoothly.

Megumi shook her head. "Thank you but it won't be necessary. It's not far and I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself," she said coolly.

"Ooh, rejected!" Yahiko murmured.

Kaoru elbowed him in the ribs. "Hush you!"

Hiko Seijuurou, master of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryu, potter (and drinker) extraordinaire, mountain of a man with an ego to match, nodded. "As you wish, then, Takanisensei." Megumi turned and walked away. They all watched her go.

Once she was out of sight, Hiko turned back to Kenshin. "And that, student-turned-teacher, is why I've come. I will make her my bride."

"But Shishou, you're almost fifty!"

"And she's almost thirty." Four jaws dropped as their owners stared at Hiko.

"I cannot believe he went there," Kaoru said. "You know if Megumisan had heard you, you'd be dead by now."

"Several times," agreed Kenshin.

It seemed an eternity before anyone could speak, but it was hardly any time before Hiko looked around at the small group. "What are you all sitting around looking like fish for?" He didn't sound too happy. "If my baka deshi can inspire a woman to love him as much as you do, then certainly he should be able to tell me how to win that one."

"You want... KENSHIN to teach you about romance?" Sano recovered enough to start snickering. "You've GOTTA be kidding!" Kenji squealed agreement and Sanosuke righted him before handing him back to his mother.

"As humbling as it is, I am not. That is why I came. I am amazed to discover the hold that he has over people's hearts, but it is only fair that the student teach the teacher, once in a while. Though he took my lessons poorly, he's not dead yet. That must mean something. And yet, I am beginning to believe that I was mistaken in coming here." He stood up abruptly, looking annoyed. "You're right. I have no reason to be here." So saying, he turned for the door, his satchel of sake and a few belongings on his back. "Sayounara."

"Oiy! I could tell you a few things!" Sano called out.

Yahiko took this as his cue to laugh; Kaoru still looked somewhere between shell-shocked and irate. "Oh, please! NOW who's kidding, ya big jerk? Even after all these years, you still can't even tell Megummmm! Memmurm mmmimmguhhh mmmummmigmmmerrrrmmm!" He was cut off by Sano's hand clamped firmly over his mouth, though that didn't stop him from trying.

"Can it, kid. I'm not lettin' you go just for callin' me a jerk." But his cheeks were flushed under the stubble.

"Maa, maa, can't you two control yourselves?" Kenshin said in something resembling a loss of patience to the two younger men before studying his old mentor, who had stopped and was looking over his shoulder. Kenshin still seemed to be rather floored by this latest turn of events. "This one has no idea what you're talking about."

"What Kenshin is trying to say so glibly is that he'd be honored to be of assistance," Sanosuke grinned. "So how about passing some of that sake around?"

"Is that ALL you ever think about?" Kaoru turned on him, having recovered from her shock. After a bombshell like that, Hiko had further dared to mention a woman's age!

"Nah. Hey, I'm hungry. What've you got to eat around here? That was why I came by in the first place," Sano said.

He didn't duck in time.

Megumi, meantime, was in just as much shock as Kaoru had been, even without knowing that Hiko had mentioned her age. People stayed out of her path as she made her way back to the clinic, so dark was her expression. How DARE this arrogant stranger presume to be worthy of her! There was only one man she had ever loved, and he was everything that egotistical pig was obviously not. THAT one was a heavier drinker than Sano, no doubt with a bigger appetite for trouble and instant self gratification, and he was so OLD! He was more than twenty years older than she; old enough to be her father. Even if he did look disgustingly good for his age. Come to think of it, there must be something to Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu; if both Hiko and Kenshin, masters of that style, looked so much younger than they were. Still, it was a thoroughly revolting notion. So what if he had been Kenshin's teacher; apparently the art of the sword was all he had managed to impart!

And thank the Kami for that; no doubt Hiko himself would have left her to her fate all those years ago... Wouldn't he?

He didn't strike her as evil, but he certainly would not have kept her on his list of friends, nor any of the others that Kensan had helped, left to his own devices. Of course, the slight redhead hadn't exactly chosen to stay out of sheer generosity. If she was honest with herself, she would acknowledge that he'd been in part been coerced to stick around, been made to feel responsible for the welfare of Kaoru, Yahiko, Sanosuke, and herself, and not entirely by the dictates of his own conscience. But he had brought her to Kaoru's home and into their lives, and come to save her out of his own free will when she'd left them behind. Her heart weighed heavy indeed as she entered the clinic.

"Oiy, Megumikun, why the long face? I thought you were going to visit the dojo for the afternoon." Genzaisensei greeted his young colleague with a concerned look.

"I was. As you know, Kensan's former master has come for a visit." The old doctor nodded as she paused. She took a deep breath. "I met him in the street - more accurately, he hailed me for directions. I guided him. By the time we reached the dojo, he announced his intentions to everyone. He came to seek a bride, and found one."

"Hmm?" Her tone worried him. She hardly EVER got that particularly cold, clipped mannerism unless she was VERY upset about something. "But why are you so upset?"

"He informed us all that he intended to marry me. And as an afterthought, asked my name." Not technically true, but close enough to suit her purposes.

This time, the old doctor was as speechless as Megumi. He turned away from her, to hide the amusement that her obvious indignation was sparking. "Megumikun. Is it so bad to be so desirable?"

She whirled on him. "Have you even MET the man!" Her outrage was almost comical. "That arrogant, self-centered, sake swilling, muscle-bound..."

Genzaisensei could practically see the steam coming out of her ears as she floundered for adjectives. "Reminds you a little of Sano, doesn't he?" He could no longer hide his own merriment.

She growled her frustration and stormed her way inside.

"What's with her?" The patient Oguni Genzai was tending watched Megumi flounce out of the room with no slight nervousness.

The old doctor shook her head. "I think she's a little upset with men right now... And I think she's happier alone for a little while." He smiled indulgently. "I'm sure she'll be fine."

The man nodded. "If you say so, doctor." Still, he made a note to himself to leave the other way once Genzaisensei had completed his treatment.


	3. Chapter 3

_Part II – Dare to be Stupid_

Student and master faced one another. This time, however, their roles were reversed: the student had become the master indeed, but not precisely as he'd expected it…

While he had not, as Sano had requested, passed the sake around, he had remained and taken advantage of the absence of the others. "I have never had a problem persuading women before," Hiko said. Kenshin thought he seemed almost as uncomfortable as he himself felt. "It's… odd," he admitted.

"You've probably never met a woman quite like Megumidono before," Kenshin said dryly. "She is of the Aizu Takani line; she comes from a proud heritage and puts a lot of stock in personal worth," he concluded.

Hiko said nothing, merely smirking in such a way as if he had said, "My worth is clear. LOOK at me!" Kenshin shook his head.

"Shishou, I don't mean fighting ability. I mean values." While his former master looked less amused, Kenshin struggled to explain it better.

"Megumidono admires someone who can admit when he's wrong and who will work to correct his mistakes," he said in a sudden flash of inspiration.

"I'm never wrong, so there should be no problem then," Hiko said in a completely matter of fact manner.

Kenshin sighed again. Why was dealing with this man getting harder instead of easier? They were both masters of their technique, survivors, protectors… Why could they not communicate?

"No, you just refuse to believe you could be wrong about anything," he muttered.

"What was that?" Hiko asked, a dangerous gleam in his eye.

"Nothing, nothing. Okay, so you want to know how to get into Megumidono's good graces?" He couldn't believe he was having this conversation.

Hiko again said nothing, wearing a look that spoke of eternal patience. They both knew it for a lie.

Kenshin scratched the back of his neck thoughtfully. "Don't antagonize her. She likes being genuinely appreciated. Most women don't like being taken for granted, but she's a doctor. She knows how to make someone suffer," he grinned weakly. Though he'd never been directly on the receiving end of her wrath, he could think of a few situations wherein she'd made things… uncomfortable for those who had distressed her.

"You should take her to lunch," he said. "It's a nice, safe time, she won't feel pressured, and if things go well you can keep going."

"Very well. I can have her prepare my favorites," Hiko said as he began to rise.

"No."

"No?" Halting mid-motion, he leveled his former student with a look that in days gone by would have made the other wilt completely. This time it had no such effect.

"No. Shishou, if you want to impress her, you have to be the one to cater to her."

"My cooking is passable. Very well. I shall make her lunch." He continued to rise at that point, but Kenshin was still shaking his head. "What, then?"

"And you called me the baka deshi." In a more normal voice, he added, "You need to take her on a date."

Hiko snorted. "A what?"

Pained, Kenshin explained the whole concept of dating as it had been explained to him when he had started exploring that direction with Kaoru. The man didn't always have to treat, much to his relief, but he left that part out. Megumi would not tolerate anyone mooching off of her. After all, if she wouldn't allow Sanosuke any sort of such liberty, she certainly wouldn't tolerate it from Hiko, whom she really didn't know. Then again, the whole subject of Sanosuke was a sore point with her.

When Sanosuke had returned from his travels, he had quickly and easily fallen into many of his old habits. He had been talking about finding a job, but in the three months since his return, hadn't seemed to succeed in his search. When Megumi had arrived for her visit, one of the first things she'd done was to take him to task for not having changed at all since he'd left. His argument that he'd grown his hair out didn't seem to impress her. Their friendship seemed to have stayed exactly the same, as though the intervening years hadn't happened. When Kenshin thought about it, he realized that there were many things different about Sanosuke, but when he was around Megumi, he seemed just as lost as he had years before.

Kenshin refrained using too many examples but he found himself lecturing about the things that Megumi found most upsetting and why he shouldn't even consider doing any of them because he'd already alienated her enough. "No woman wants to be informed that you've chosen her as your wife like that. The Western idea of choosing one's own spouse is gaining popularity, Shishou. I have a feeling that, as modern as Megumidono is, she probably approves of the idea very much. And she won't be a traditional stay at home sort of wife."

"Hmph." Hiko made it clear how little Western ideas impressed him. "I'm beginning to think I should have stuck with my pottery."

"Agreed," Kenshin muttered. He had never been able to understand how Hiko's mind worked. Often, he was perfectly happy not to "get it", but now, with one of his friends' lives at stake – in a manner of speaking – he was wishing rather fervently that the man before him would stop being such a pile of walking egotism and elusiveness.

"What was that?"

"Nothing."

"I thought so," Hiko smirked.

Kenshin sighed again. He had to wonder if it was really his imagination that whatever guiding forces there were always seemed to conspire against him whenever his shishou was around.

"So. This… date… thing. I'm supposed to take her out for a meal and then I can tell her she will be my wife?" The man's face was utterly impassive. Not a trace of amusement showed; he seemed to be utterly serious. ~I am having way too much fun with this. Then again, this kid has always found me almost as frustrating as I found him.~

"Shishou, not even you can be that utterly obtuse," Kenshin burst out in a fit of purest exasperation. "There is no doubt in this one's mind you can handle yourself around women, so why not just say what's really going on?"

Finally the façade cracked; the hint of a smile played around Hiko's features. "Baka deshi. You're losing your touch. This new life of yours has made you complacent; it never would have taken you this long to lose your patience with me until you settled down here. I would never have guessed that seeing you married with a child would dull your edges this quickly." The smile evolved into a smirk.

"Kaorudono," Kenshin stressed her name, "has had no such effect. It's hardly her fault that you enjoy mind…games. And you're avoiding the question."

Hiko's smirk deepened at Kenshin's self-censorship. "Well. Since you refused to take on the mantle and the name, it seemed to me there were only two options. Letting Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu fall into disuse is not one of them. If you wouldn't take on the mantle, I would have to find another student… Or make one. I have not yet found another student."

Kenshin stared at him. The ramifications of what his master was saying were beginning to sink in. Megumi had told them that his own body would not be able to stand the strain of working with the technique any longer; as it was, he was still not fully recovered from Enishi's persistent quest for revenge. He had long since decided not to pass on the skills of his school, but there was nothing he could do to prevent his teacher from finding another student. But the idea of Hiko using Megumi to bear him a son struck him suddenly as funny. He began to laugh.

Hiko merely raised an eyebrow.

""You really don't understand Megumidono, do you. She's a doctor. She despises fighting. She wouldn't allow any son of hers to be trained as a fighter," Kenshin explained, still snickering.

"She wouldn't have to know," Hiko said smugly.

"There's no way you could keep it from her," Kenshin said, sobering quickly. "Shishou, you're still avoiding the question."

"Baka. As you so indelicately pointed out, I'm nearing fifty. I like my solitary life. Think about it."

Kenshin tried. Why on earth would Hiko Seijuurou, thirteenth master of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu, also known as Niitsu Kakunoshin the potter, suddenly be concerned about – "Shishou! You're dying! That's it, isn't it!" It all made sense! Suddenly to wish to wed – and to a doctor!

"The baka deshi has surpassed himself." Kenshin stared at Hiko, shock and dismay evident in every line of his being. He couldn't think of what to say. But as he opened his mouth to speak, the man before him continued, "in stupidity."

"Oro…"

"I'm not dying, you idiot. I simply feel that the third time should be the charm, and I don't wish to take any risks on yet another foolish choice of student ruining it for me," he concluded. "Now you are no longer my student, that obstacle at least should no longer be at issue."

"Another… student? Third time?"

"You are the only one I have taught so far, but I was not my master's first student. There was another before me. My own master had a student who failed the final test and did not inherit the ougi."

"Amakakeru Ryuu No Hirameki," Kenshin paled. The school's succession technique; it would cost the master his life if the student succeeded – and the student's own if he didn't.

"He was believed dead, but it seems he survived and passed on all but the succession technique to another. I don't wish that the true style should disappear before the false," he said softly. "The world is changing swiftly, and that which was once enough is no longer so. It may be that Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu has no place in the world anymore, but I fear that the line of failure will lead to destruction of everything that has been fought for. I cannot allow that to happen.

"This is all your fault, you realize."

"How could this one be to blame?" Kenshin sputtered indignantly.

"You and your silly ideals are apparently contagious."

"If you think so, maybe being with Megumidono would be good for you. If you think you can handle her," Kenshin blurted out. His own eyes widened and he clapped his hands to his own mouth. If wind of him saying so ever reached her, she'd kill him herself… Still, even as Hiko left the room, he found himself wondering, "What third time?"

"_The best way to get close to a woman is to need her,"_ Kenshin had said at one point during his dialogue with Hiko. Early that afternoon, the broad-shouldered man got a very good chance to observe someone else who seemed to have taken that advice to heart.

"Oh, Sanosuke, what happened to you?" Kaoru greeted the tall young man as he swaggered – or perhaps staggered – into the dojo shortly before dinnertime.

"Eh, you know," he shrugged – or tried to. "There was, how does Kenshin always put it? An incident with the gambling…"

Kaoru looked suspicious. "You didn't bring anyone new back here, did you?"

"Nah, nothin' like that. It was at a friend's apartment, only the guy's wife came home and we all hadda get out of there, and I kinda forgot about the tree outside the window."

"You fell into a tree?" Yahiko snickered.

"Not into a tree," Sano grumbled.

"Out of it," Kaoru shook her head. "You better go get that looked at," she pointed to a nasty-looking scratch over his eye.

"What, so the fox can yell at me again?"

"I wouldn't argue with her, Sanosuke. After all, wouldn't you rather she was yelling at you? Hikosan's already gone over there, ya know," Yahiko smirked.

Glaring at him, Sanosuke muttered something that didn't sound very nice under his breath. "Save me some dinner."

"Sure, if only to hear about what happened," Yahiko grinned even wider. Giving him another dirty look, Sano turned on his heel and made his uneven way to the clinic.

There seemed to be a crowd outside of it, and as Sano got closer, he realized that the small gathering of people consisted entirely of women crowding around one somewhat disgruntled-looking man – a very familiar man, who seemed to be trying to make progress toward the clinic, who had looked up to see him smirking as Sagara Sanosuke passed Hiko Seijuurou.

Sanosuke got there first, unimpeded by a small horde of smitten females of all ages. Just in time, too, for the least smitten female he'd ever met to take one look at him, glower, and mutter something about him finally using his head instead of his right hand.

"I forgot about the tree," was all he said. "By the way, you should know that …that guy is on his way here. He'd've been here sooner if he wasn't drowning in adoring fans," Sano muttered, unsure how to feel about that.

"Ugh. I wish he'd go back to wherever he came from."

Megumi's disgust gave him hope. "Jouchan thinks he's somethin'," the young man ventured.

"Kaoruchan is not infallible. If she's so impressed with him, let HER marry him."

"Ha, I ain't buyin' it."

Megumi paused in her ministrations of Sanosuke's wound which would in fact require stitches. "And what would that be?"

Sanosuke should have noticed that her tone was a little too sweet. "You just want a chance to move in on Kenshin." Megumi should have noticed that his tone was a little too cool.

"He married her," was all Megumi said. The flicker of sadness in her eyes grabbed him, as it had once before.

"_If 'Kensan' could see you now, I don't think he'd be quite so happy where he is,"_ Sano's own words from years before echoed in both of their minds. "You're the better woman. You deserve a better man," Sanosuke heard himself say now. "If you won't give me a chance, why not him? Who better to show Kenshin what he's missin'?" ~What the hell am I saying!~

"What the hell are you saying?" Megumi unknowingly echoed his thoughts. He couldn't be sure what she was thinking; she had stopped and was staring at him in complete shock. Neither one of them acknowledged his feeble attempt at inserting himself into the equation.

"I... don't know," Sano said, as confused as she.

"It sounded like you said something nice again," Megumi said, attempting to recover her composure as she bade Sanosuke lie down for the stitches. He complied easily, still trying to figure out what demon had possessed him to spout such a thing. "Still, you might be right… I'll be going back to Aizu soon enough. It certainly would be amusing to entertain him for a little while…"

"Entertain? Entertain how?" Something about this discussion was suddenly a little too familiar for Sanosuke's tastes.

"I'm looking for Takanisensei," a voice echoed through the clinic wall before she could answer.

"Takanisensei is with a patient," they heard Oguni Genzai reply. "Is there something wrong?"

"I come on a personal matter," Hiko said. "I am Hiko Seijuurou the Thirteenth, and I have come to woo her."

"Ah, yes, Megumikun mentioned you might come looking for her. Please have a seat. Let me see how long she'll be delayed." Bowing and smiling – perhaps smirking? – Genzaisensei entered the small treatment room where Megumi had been stitching Sanosuke's laceration. Had been – because now she was frozen and trembling, and the look on her face spoke of intensive levels of suffering for whoever next crossed her path. For all her casual speech a moment before, she was not at all impressed with Hiko's methods.

Quietly, the small man took the needle from her rigid fingers; swiftly he finished the last two stitches. "You might want to leave now, Sanosuke, before she really gets upset."

"OH no. I ain't missin' this for ANYTHING," Sanosuke grinned.

Unable to help himself, the old doctor grinned back. "You realize she'll make us pay for this forever," he said.

Sanosuke shrugged. "That's nothing new."

"True."

They watched Megumi as her face went from red to white and back again. It had only been about a minute since the man had walked in; Genzai worked quickly. Finally he dared to venture a step towards her, his concern evident. "Megumikun?"

She unfroze. Almost. "Of course, Genzaisensei. Thank you. I will see to that… person right now," she said, one of her patented Kitsune smiles in place.

Oguni and Sagara shared a nervous look; whenever Megumi had that expression, it was usually proven dangerous to be in her vicinity.

"He'll never know what hit him," one or the other whispered as she slinked out of the room, the picture of feminine grace. Shamelessly they peered around the doorframe.

"I beg your indulgence, Hikosan. I was with a patient in need of urgent care."

"You were with that idiot friend of my idiot pupil's, stitching up his idiot bird-head," Hiko countered.

"Isn't it the same thing?"

"Huh?" Genzai elbowed Sanosuke sharply at the tall youth's exclamation.

"Irrelevant. Have you had lunch?"

Megumi was taken aback. "Lunch? No, I –"

"It's getting late in the day for it. Come. Show me a good place to eat and I will take you to lunch. Alone," he said with a pointed look towards the doorframe where the two eavesdroppers grinned sheepishly.

"I'm not hungry, thank you," Megumi said primly.

A stomach growled. Hiko's eyebrow went up.

"That was me, sorry," Sanosuke said, straightening up and sauntering out to lean against the wall of the waiting room.

The smile Megumi flashed him was full of honest gratitude.

"If you'll forgive me, I have files to amend," she said, turning. "If you're so eager to take someone out to lunch, the tori-atama knows some good places to go."

"Oiy!"

"I am not interested in him. I am interested in you." Inspiration struck. "Even in this modern era, a woman doctor is a novelty. I would hear more about how you became involved in medicine."

~Damn. He's REAL smooth,~ Sanosuke flinched inside. ~Playing up to her medical skills as part of her rather than the other way around. Why didn't I ever think of that?~

"Well," Megumi hedged. "I still have a lot of work to finish."

"Don't worry about it!" Genzai sauntered out to stand by the doorframe. "I can finish up for you?" The grin he wore was a little TOO innocent. The look Megumi gave him promised him retribution in spades later on, but she turned back to Hiko.

"It seems I've been freed to go to lunch," she sighed.

"Lead the way," Hiko said with a graceful gesture. As much as Megumi hated to admit it, the big man was a study in the magnificence of the male figure – at least, from what she could see.

"My, what a very big mantle you have," she said as she passed him, oblivious to Sanosuke's darkening expression and Genzaisensei's thoroughly amused one.

"It's weighted to repress the full power of the masters of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu," he explained as he followed her outside. "In times of peace, the full power would be too much. It's similar reasoning as that which that stupid student of mine uses a sakabatou. Otherwise, the speed and strength of the master would overwhelm the opponents beyond…" His voice faded into the distance as Sanosuke seethed and the old doctor smirked.

"At least one of us is gonna regret this," Sanosuke grumbled as he stalked out of the clinic.


	4. Chapter 4

_Part III - Young, Dumb and Ugly _

From the clinic, Sanosuke went directly back to the dojo. He didn't tell them what he'd witnessed right away. Yahiko had taken one look at his friend's face and launched into a grin. He couldn't resist teasing the tall man mercilessly. "Did you see how she treated him? Worse even than you!"

"Shut up, brat." The ex-gangster didn't even raise his voice. "I never had a chance to begin with. She's way too good for me. She deserves someone like him." He kicked aimlessly at an innocent pebble.

Yahiko shook his head, sensing that Sanosuke was upset. "I wouldn't bet on it. The problem is you both want the same things from a woman."

"Huh?"

"You want a female Kenshin."

Sano gave him the blankest stare imaginable.

Sighing again, the younger man sat down. "I'm not saying either one of you... you know… that Kenshin is... I mean you want someone willing to do what she's told, when she's told. You want someone to support you on what she makes, as well as cook and clean for you and cater to you and all that. Kinda like the ugly toad wants from Kenshin."

Floored, Sanosuke stared at his young friend. "But Kenshin isn't..."

Yahiko shook his head in disgust. "Oh please. Like he doesn't jump up running every time she blinks at him. It's gross! He has a son to raise, and if he's not careful, that kid is going to be a pushover too!" He seemed personally affronted by the very notion.

"But you like it when Tsubame does the same for you," Sano pointed out.

"That's different." Yahiko shrugged. "That's the way she is. The ugly toad ain't like that at all. Neither's Megumisan. She's very independent and would never stand to be someone's doormat. Someone like her needs a partner, not a master. She'd need to be the one in charge more often than not."

The more Yahiko said, the more impressed Sanosuke was. "You know a lot about it, especially for a kid." Admiration and envy mixed in his voice. "I just don't get women. Why can't they all be alike?"

Yahiko snorted. "It'd get boring fast. And I'm not a kid. I'll be fifteen soon."

The other man had to nod. "You've grown up a lot, kid. You're not such a brat anymore." He shot a sideways glance at Yahiko, who hardly seemed to notice. "Sometimes."

Yahiko ignored the addition. "How DO you think he does it? Kenshin, I mean."

Sanosuke shrugged. "Why not ask him?" Standing, he turned to face the dojo. "Oiy, Kenshin!"

A moment later, Kaoru emerged, Kenji in her arms. She was dressed for teaching. "Kenshin's making lunch. What do you want?"

"Nothin'. Wanted to ask him something." Sano shrugged again. Kaoru eyed him. "Guy stuff."

"Hm. So," she said, looking away from them. "What do you think of Hikosan and his... proposal?"

"He's gotta be nuts, tellin' the Kitsune he's 'decided' she'll be his wife. Is he that dumb?" Sanosuke wondered aloud.

Kaoru shook her head. "Can you blame him, really? You never met him before yesterday, so you wouldn't know, but he's actually very perceptive. Noble, too. You should have seen him back in Kyoto, at the Aoiya, the way he spoke to Fuji and talked him into a true fight, talked to him man to man and warrior to warrior." Her eyes sparkled with delight. "Really, he was amazing!"

"If you're so impressed with him, why don't you marry him?" Sanosuke grumbled.

"He didn't ask me," she said primly. "Besides, I am a happily married woman." Kenji giggled as though in agreement.

"Well, if you weren't and he had?" Sano stared at her intently. "Would you?"

Kaoru blushed. "The thing that bothers me about him is he's so much older than I."

"Which one?" Yahiko smirked.

Kaoru glared. "Hiko of course!"

"He's not that much older than Kenshin. Especially next to you."

For a moment, she looked like she was ready to blow off at them both, but something made her change her mind. "You're right. Kenshin is a lot older than I am. He just doesn't SEEM older, and he certainly doesn't look it. Hikosan... Does. I don't know. But so does Megumisan, sometimes at least." She sighed. "But I can't disagree that he went about it the wrong way. Does he really have no skill with women? Look at him! And Kenshin's so different from him. Does he really think Kenshin can teach him about women?" Kaoru looked completely incredulous. "I mean, it's not like we're that complicated."

Sano snorted derisively. "You're not? Then explain what happened earlier." He didn't look happy. Clearly he resented Hiko's decision almost as much as Megumi did.

"That's easy. For one thing, women in general don't like decisions being made for them. No matter how good looking he is," she said distractedly. "Megumisan less than most, with her history especially. And when a perfect stranger suddenly walks in out of nowhere and says he intends to marry you..." She shook her head. "It's not the kind of thing a woman appreciates. Now, slow romance and compliments are more likely to win a woman's heart than barging in and demanding things from her."

"Maybe you should be telling Hikosan that," Yahiko said.

~Maybe I should be taking notes,~ Sanosuke thought.

"But he came to ask Kenshin's advice."

"I'd love to hear what Kenshin's got to say on the subject," Sano grinned. "Did you see the look on his face?"

"Did YOU see the look on HERS?" Yahiko chortled, pointing to Kaoru. "When he said that about how old Megumisan is, I thought she was gonna choke!"

Now, however, she merely gave her pupil a dirty look. "I'd love to hear it myself," she muttered. "The nerve of that over-muscled old man!"

"Suddenly he's not so good looking anymore, is he?" Yahiko smirked.

Sanosuke looked thoughtful. "He's never met the Kitsune before. Why on earth does he wanna marry her anyway?"

"Why don't you fight him for her, Sano? Defend your woman!" Yahiko's smirk grew bigger yet until a fist crashed down heavily atop his head. "OIY! What was that for, ya big jerk?"

"I'd tell you to shut up, but it doesn't seem to be physically possible," he growled.

Kaoru shook her head. "I'd just love to know what's going through that big lug's head." Biting her lip, she looked unhappily toward the door of the kitchen, where Kenshin cooked. He hadn't said a word about his discussion with the man he called Shishou.

"Anyway, I'm off to the other dojo now. I want a full report," Kaoru said, glaring at them both meaningfully.

"Sure," Sano said without enthusiasm. He lapsed into a long silence, until Kaoru was well out of sight. "The old man should give up."

"You're just cranky because he beat you to it," Yahiko smirked at Sanosuke. When the tall young man didn't even respond, Yahiko got serious. "Wow, you really are upset about this, aren't you."

Kicking at a pebble in the road, Sano said nothing.

"I get the feeling you're gonna go off again, aren't you," Yahiko said slowly, staring at his friend.

"What?" Sano returned the stare in kind, completely shocked. ~How does the kid know?~

"Well, you've been talking about getting a job but you haven't found one yet. And Megumisan is going back to her clinic soon. When she goes," Yahiko smirked suddenly, "you have one less reason to stay. I'd bet you're gonna follow her to Aizu this time, aren't you!"

Instead of inflicting violence on the boy, Sano went back to kicking at pebbles. Yahiko started to worry. "You know, you really shouldn't let the situation get to you. You know Megumisan isn't going to marry Hikosan, not any more than she'd marry Aoshi." The smirk had sneaked back.

Unable to help himself, Sanosuke snorted derisively. "Like I care who the Kitsune marries."

"Uh huh."

"Why would I?"

"Cuz you're in LOOOOOOVE!" Yahiko grinned and took off running, but Sanosuke was faster. He gave Yahiko a flying start to somewhere in the distance, then resumed pebble abuse.

~Dammit, the kid's right. The damn Kitsune really IS a fox. Somehow, she's put up with me all this time. Sometimes I think she cares, and then sometimes… I wonder if my old man would have some ideas. Then again, maybe not…~ His thoughts wandered for a while, contemplating the little sister he'd left behind, his father, his little brother who was now a student at Kaoru's dojo… It was all Megumi's fault anyway, all these thoughts of family. Kenshin and the others were all the family he needed!

But what if… Just maybe, what if Megumi did decide to hear Hiko out? She had allowed herself to be railroaded into that date, after all...


	5. Chapter 5

_Part IV – Girls Just Wanna Have Lunch_

"At least one of us is gonna regret this," Sanosuke had grumbled as he stalked out of the clinic.

Although Megumi didn't hear him, her thoughts were following similar lines. Except in her mind, the wording was a little different. ~They are all going to regret this,~ she seethed as the insufferably arrogant man droned on about the awesome power of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu and how his ridiculous cloak kept him reined in because he himself was so awesomely powerful. Admittedly, from a medical point of view some of what he said had interesting potential but overall, he was tedious.

"I already know enough about your silly swordfighting school," she cut him off finally.

Startled, he ceased speaking and stared at her. She kept walking.

"I've seen Kensan fight. I know very little about the specifics but I know the effect it has on his body, and I've seen him in action. Yes, it's very impressive, and a big man like you might be better able to sustain the damage it does over time, but no one is immortal. I'm not impressed by how heavy that stupid cloak is. I'm not impressed by how many people you can _kill_," she said, her disgust most evident on that final word. "Least of all with a skill set that will kill the user just as surely."

~She may not be impressed, but I can't say the same,~ he mused. ~Her tongue is as sharp as my sword, and as deadly. Why do I find that so… intriguing? She's half my age. Why is she so cynical? I could have any woman I wanted. Why one who hates me?

~Well, she did agree to go on this …date thing,~ he reminded himself. ~Stupid idea, really. But if that idiot thinks it will work…~

"You're right. I should have known better than to try to teach Kenshin something that would kill him, but there was no way to know that the little boy I saw that day, with such a huge spirit, would grow up to be such a puny little stick."

"Kensan is definitely no puny stick. Just because you're an overmuscled brute –"

"Oh ho! Is _that _how it is," Hiko cut her off with another one of his smirks. "The little runt didn't do so badly for himself before settling down after all." It was a risk. He was sure that the doctor had never been intimate with his scrawny student, but there was something about her that riled him. He didn't understand the irrational desire to provoke her, but based on the little he'd seen, he wasn't the only man she affected that way… He refused to think about the fact that the only other person he ever felt the need to goad so intensely was his former student.

She whirled, the medicine chest in her hand raised high over her head. Her expression was filled with a murderous fury. Suddenly a large hand grasped her wrist, stopping her downswing without any apparent effort. Somewhere in the back of her mind, her rational self was impressed. Even Kensan had never made it look so… _effortless_.

"Letting your temper get the best of you is the surest way to defeat at the hands of an enemy," he said calmly.

"I'm glad to see you admit that you're my enemy," she hissed.

"I'm not your enemy." ~Your enemy probably wouldn't want to make you scream with ecstasy right about now,~ the unbidden thought scampered across his mind. He grabbed the traitorous thought and flung it into the wall. Repeatedly.

"You certainly can't claim to be a friend," she said, her composure coming back to her with a haughty flick of hair over her shoulder.

"I never said I wanted to be your friend," he reminded her.

"You said you came for a wife. I am a doctor."

"I am a master of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu."

"So I've heard."

"I'm also a simple, reclusive potter."

"Are you planning to unhand me anytime soon?" Indeed, people were staring at them as they stood in the road, his hand on her wrist, her medicine box dangling from her grasp.

"Are you planning to hit me again?"

"Are you planning to continue to insult Kensan's honor?" Her color was high, though she kept her expression cool.

~His honor. Not her own. Interesting.~ "Are you planning to insult his learning?"

"Hmph," she said, snatching her hand back from his loosened grasp.

"So where are we going for lunch?"

"A restaurant."

"I see," he said. They walked the rest of the way in silence as she led him, not to the Akabeko, but to a small noodle shop on a side street.

They found a table and gave their order, sitting in uneasy silence. It stretched on.

The chatty young waitress returned finally, setting a bowl down in front of Megumi. "For you, the Kitsune Udon, right?" She either didn't notice Megumi's faint blush or didn't care. ~Why should she? It's not as though she knows what they call me.~

"And for you, the plain soba. You know, there's only one other guy who orders plain soba regularly around here, and I haven't seen him for a long time. I hope he's okay. He's a cop, you know."

"We've met," Megumi said coolly. "I doubt that man will ever not be okay."

"Sorry," the waitress said, not sounding sorry at all. "Call if you need anything," she said with a deliberate wink in Hiko's direction as she flounced off merrily.

"Kitsune udon, hmm?" Hiko's smirk was back. "Is that why that punk calls you Kitsune, then?"

"I don't usually order it in front of the others," she admitted, "precisely because of that stupid nickname."

"If it bothers you, tell him to stop."

"I have."

"Tell him again."

"I have. It seems to be a male trait, not picking up hints."

"Then stop hinting and tell him outright."

"Okay. I'm not going to marry you."

Hiko cocked an eyebrow again. What was it about this woman that made him do that so often? "That was abrupt."

"No less so than your approach."

"You have a point."

They continued to eat in silence for a little while longer. Hiko took the opportunity to observe Megumi, fully aware she was scrutinizing him at least as intensely. But while he was wondering what made her so sad behind the foxy, flirty, fiery façade, she was pondering why Kenshin had put up with him for so long.

It didn't make much sense to her. The man was arrogant, flamboyant, arrogant, self-righteous, arrogant, abusive, arrogant, enigmatic, arrogant, selfish, arrogant, reclusive, and arrogant. And arrogant besides. Just from observing the way Kensan had seemed so reduced next to him infuriated her; the man before her treated her personal hero like he was still a sullen teenager.

But then, there had been the way he'd come to the Aoiya when Kenshin had asked him to watch out for his friends. She hadn't come until he had already left the inn and so had not met him then, but she'd heard all about it from Yahiko and Kaoru, then in vivid detail from Okon and Omasu. Both onmitsu were totally smitten with the big man. As far as she was concerned, they were welcome to him.

"Why me?" She hadn't quite intended to ask him aloud, but the words had slipped out. The question lingered between them as he studied her a moment longer.

"At first, I saw you and admired your build. Hear me out," he said quickly, seeing her begin to protest in outrage. "When I saw you on the street, I could easily tell that you were an attractive, intelligent woman of good breeding."

"All that from one look," Megumi managed to interject, her scorn evident.

"Yes. And then you treated me as no woman ever has before. You ignored me." She smirked at the look of disbelief on his face, the bewilderment in his tone. "No woman has ever ignored me before. I didn't like it."

"That's hardly surprising."

It was his turn to throw the conversation on its head. "What made you decide to trust me?"

Now it was Megumi's turn to be taken aback. "I'm sorry?"

"When I asked for directions, you wanted to know why. All I said was that I was expected. You were protecting that idiot; I understand that. But you could as easily have denied any knowledge of the address. Instead you chose to trust me."

Megumi sighed. "If you must know…" She let the line hover in the air between them, a taunt of its own. He did not rise to the bait, and finally she confessed. "I wish I could say I trusted some instinct, but the truth is I'd heard your description far too often. Not many men have hair so much longer than mine. And that cloak is pretty obvious." Suddenly she smiled, a little embarrassed. Hiko felt himself responding in kind.

"I never saw the point in traveling incognito."

"Funny, for a self-proclaimed hermit to be so obvious about himself."

"I suppose it doesn't seem to make much sense, does it," he conceded.

"Not at all, actually." Suddenly, oddly, the tension was if not gone, at least it had considerably lessened. The balance had shifted. They both felt it.

"I don't see how you expect a marriage to work without even friendship."

"It's worked for centuries."

"Under the traditional roles, yes," Megumi conceded. "Surely you understand I am not a woman given to the traditional ways."

"That is true."

Megumi raised an eyebrow in response, but Hiko gave no answer. They continued to eat in contemplative silence.

Hiko said not a word as he paid for them both when they left.

"Plain soba? Really?" Megumi sounded genuinely puzzled as they walked back towards the dojo.

"It's good for you. And I like it," Hiko said. "Kitsune udon, hmm?"

"I like Kitsune udon. Really, plain soba? Or are you just being cheap," Megumi said, with another toss of her head.

"I am not cheap. And what are you going to do to keep me from telling your friend?"

Megumi did not bother to reply verbally. The dirty look she leveled at him set him chuckling deeply for several minutes.

When they returned to the dojo (rather than the clinic, at Megumi's suggestion; she was not ready to face her mentor's inevitable questions) Kaoru was still at Maekawa's dojo and Yahiko had gone to the Akabeko. Sanosuke had gone back to his apartment to mope. And so, Kenshin was alone to be startled by the most unexpected sound of Hiko's laughter – and Megumi's. Real laughter, and not the wicked Kitsune laugh they all knew and dreaded.

Somehow, this was worse.

From the moment he'd learned of his mentor's intentions, one thought had wiggled its insidious way into his mind and taken over. He had come to view Hiko Seijuurou as a father figure sometime during the years of sarcasm and embarrassment interspersed with training. But he could not, _would_ not accept Megumi as a mother figure. Not Takani Megumi. And the thought of those two titanic egos clashing made him want to cower under the covers, or maybe Yahiko's favorite spot under the porch.

Megumi was very special to them all, but she scared him in ways he didn't care to contemplate. Kaoru was a much more straightforward person; as Sanosuke had pointed out on many occasions, she wasn't one for jokes. Megumi needed someone who could deal with such a complex personality; under the surface, she was too much like Kenshin himself in certain ways. And as for her approach to life... If she was to be with someone, it would have to be someone who respected her and would understand that her patients would have to come first. Someone who would love her and not try to change her.

He couldn't wrap his ahead around the idea that Hiko was that man. Admittedly, his shishou was certainly able to protect her – far more than Kenshin himself, as things stood. But he wasn't one given to displays of tenderness, and Megumi needed reassurance of her value as a woman. Sanosuke never seemed to think of treating her as other than a "medicine box", which made him shake his head.

And now, who knew where Sanosuke was, and here he was alone and about to be faced with his mentor and his friend. Getting along. Quite well, by the sound of it.

Well enough for her to reconsider his proposal? Kenshin wondered, the niggling finger of fear poking him in the spine.

As they entered the courtyard, his stomach clenched. The expressions on their faces, their body language, all spoke to him of a change in their relationship since that morning. Hiko was actually smiling, and Megumi…

Kenshin's heart sank.

Megumi was blushing.

He COULD NOT let this happen. She was his friend. It would not do to have her be his not-quite-stepmother! For one thing, she was six years younger than he himself!

~Stay calm,~ he reminded himself. ~There are any number of reasons they could look so relaxed and comfortable together…~


	6. Chapter 6

_Part V –Do I Creep You Out _

The thought, of course, had already occurred to Hiko, but he wasn't about to mention it to Megumi. He had long thought of Kenshin like a son, and it amused him to think that were he indeed to marry this woman, in Kenshin's mind she would most likely fill the role of stepmother.

That in itself would be worth it.

The problem was, he was quickly discovering the many complicated facets to her personality and the idea was no longer an amusing whim.

He had been involved before – twice before, in fact, there had been women who intrigued him sufficiently to consider their potential as wives, but neither one had panned out. In the space of a day, what had started out as a mere whim inspired by his (probably imagined) beginning of the aging process had become a more serious quest. He did not believe in love at first sight, but since she'd walked by again…

Hiko shook his head in disgust at himself. He was being more of a fool than his erstwhile apprentice!

Still, the warmth in her eyes, the redness of her lips against her pale skin… She was a beautiful woman. Stunning, really; worthy in appearance even of a man such as himself. He wondered whether she had good hips for bearing children. At least, that's what he told himself when he found himself watching her walk ahead of him.

Megumi was not entirely oblivious of his eyes on her, though she chose to ignore it. She was used to men ogling her like a piece of particularly ripe and luscious fruit into which they could not wait to bury their faces. At least that was what she told herself, feeling Hiko's eyes on her as she walked.

"If you're doing this to get to Kensan, there are better ways," she said quietly as they entered the yard. "Watch."

~I'm watching, believe me.~ Hiko said nothing. He did notice that Kenshin seemed to be focusing particularly hard on the laundry he was washing within an inch of its life…

"Oh, Kensan! Where is everyone?"

Kenshin looked up with the biggest, fakest Patented Rurouni Smile she'd ever seen him wear. "Ah, Megumidono! Shishou! Welcome back! Kaorudono is at the Maekawa dojo and Yahiko is working at the Akabeko. Kenji's taking a nap, finally."

"And the tori-atama?"

Kenshin shrugged. "He left a while ago. He said he had something to take care of."

"So it's just us, then? That's good, because Seikun and I have something we want to discuss with you."

Trepidation began to crack the mask. "Oro…?"

Hiko managed to keep a straight face. Barely. ~Seikun? Oh, you vixen, my baka deshi is not the only one about to suffer.~

"He told me everything you said, Kensan, and he has been so kind and understanding… Kensan, he explained everything. And if you mean it, then yes, I will stay here, unless you prefer to come to Aizu."

"Aizu?"

Hiko tensed. Suddenly he knew beyond doubt that Kenshin's goat was not the only one she was about to obtain…

"I understand, Kensan. It can't be easy for you under the circumstances, but you really didn't have to have Seikun come here to convince me. I don't blame you, really. I don't much like the idea of being someone's mistress, but seeing as it's you..."

Kenshin looked around frantically, thanking whatever deities were within hearing that Kaoru wasn't. Then he stared at Megumi, squeaked out a trailing "oro", and keeled over.

Hiko's eyes narrowed. Before he could even speak, Megumi had turned to him, and he understood why she had earned the nickname Kitsune. "And that," she said in a saccharine voice, "is how it's done." And then… The Laugh.

That wicked, merciless "Oh-ho-ho", executed with perfect ladylike poise, sent shivers up and down Hiko's spine. For the first time in many years, he had underestimated his opponent. For that was now how he saw her, a worthy foe in this game of hearts, meant to be conquered. ~The dividing comes later,~ his inner pervert smirked.

~Shut up,~ he told it.

As though the moment weren't awkward enough, that was when a familiar spiky head poked into the front gate, followed by the rest of a very sullen Sanosuke.

He froze upon seeing Hiko and Megumi already there. Mentally, he cursed; he really didn't want to be around either one of them at the moment. Then he took in the scene: Kenshin, down for the count; Hiko, uncharacteristically caught somewhere between confusion and fuming; Megumi, in top wicked-Kitsune form.

And he knew it was far from over. The one thing he was sure of was that the more he thought of her with Hiko, the more he disliked the idea. Besides, if he'd read the relationship between Kenshin and his shishou correctly, there was a strong father-son dynamic, so wouldn't a marriage between Hiko and Megumi mean that Megumi would become, in a sense, Kenshin's stepmother?

His mind balked. His whole body ceased functioning for a moment at the sheer absurdity of the notion. She was younger than Kenshin, for one thing. It was just… so… intensely… _**WRONG.**_

"Something tells me I really don't want to know," he said, surveying the scene. He poked Kenshin with the toe of his shoe, evoking a faint "oro..." Sanosuke shook his head.

"Oiy, what did you two do to Kenshin?" Crossing his arms, he brought his gaze to bear on Megumi, who wasn't even trying to look innocent.

"This... woman... told my idiot pupil that I had explained to her that he wished to make her his concubine." Hiko was too busy glowering at Megumi to notice Sano's reaction.

"She WHAT?" It came out in a startled growl, but as the implications sank in, Sanosuke threw back his head and howled with laughter. That certainly did not help Hiko's mood, but oddly, Megumi lost the fox ears and seemed to be glaring at him in turn. "Oiy, Kitsune, I gotta say, I'm impressed. Way to turn the tables on this guy's head," he said, jerking his chin towards the towering inferno of rage that Hiko was well on his way to becoming.

"Oh, but Sano, what makes you think I was joking?" The ears were back. And so was the laugh.

"Someone ought to have thrown you over his knee and spanked you a long time ago. Did no one ever discipline you?" Hiko's voice came out softly, but his arms were folded tightly across his chest, as though he were struggling not to do just that.

Something flickered indefinably across Megumi's face. Kenshin, starting to come to, noticed it. Hiko, glowering, noticed it. Sanosuke stopped laughing, understanding it.

"Don't push your luck, old man," he snarled, his body assuming a loose and ready stance. Hiko probably hadn't been made aware of Megumi's more recent history; her captivity and abuse by Takeda Kanryuu was hardly casual conversation material. While her friends knew some of what she had endured, no doubt spanking was a fairly mild punishment; Sano had to admit to himself that a little more discipline might not be a bad thing for her. Still, this outsider had no right to threaten her, Kenshin's teacher or not.

Hiko's head snapped up, reading all three expressions and the shift of mood easily. Taking a deep breath, he relaxed his own stance. Clearly there was something more going on with Takani Megumi than the little Kenshin had told him. "It seems my baka deshi didn't tell me everything I'd need to know," he said archly. "Why don't you fill me in, so any future faux pas might be avoided?"

Sanosuke continued to glare, but Kenshin sighed. "That's the closest to an apology you'll ever hear from him, Sano," he informed his friend quietly. "And it is true that this one did not mention any of Megumidono's more recent history. It did not seem appropriate." Taking one last rueful look at the laundry, he rose and brushed himself off. "Actually, this one was hoping Shishou would look somewhere else for his… bride." He had to force the word out.

"You and me both," Sano muttered.

"Maybe if he knew, he would," Megumi said softly. She looked torn.

~If I didn't know any better, I'd think she was reconsidering Shishou's proposal… This is not good.~ Kenshin gestured them inside. "Perhaps we should talk, then." He ducked into the kitchen and brought out tea. He was not surprised in the least when Hiko and Sano both declined. He was surprised, however, when his master offered his friend some sake.

"This better not end in a drinking contest," he grumbled to Megumi. She didn't answer, her eyes focused on the floor. ~This is not good at all.~

"So. I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that the friends with whom my idiot pupil surrounded himself all have questionable pasts." At Sano's start, he shook his head. "The red bandanna, the kanji 'Aku' on your back… No one without a reason would wear the character for evil. And I'd guess… Sekihoutai."

Had he not already been seated, Sanosuke would have taken a step back in shock. "How did you—"

"Explain it to him." Hiko's order was clearly directed at Kenshin.

The redhead sighed. "Shishou's old," he muttered. At the eyebrow's movement, he raised his voice to a more normal tone. "But that aside, Shishou's ideals helped form this one's. Despite his reclusive behavior, he did pay attention to current events, even if he chose to avoid them as much as possible."

"Unlike some, I did not believe that becoming nothing but a killer would benefit anyone."

Kenshin's eyes flashed – violet, Sanosuke was relieved to note. Instead of rising to the older man's bait, he turned the conversation back to the starting point. "That is an old argument, and this is not the time."

"I, too, was nothing more than a killer."

Three startled faces turned to look at Megumi. Her hands were folded neatly in her lap, but her bowed head and soft words could not hide how tightly they were clenched. ~Kenshin's had fifteen years; she only had a few months before she went to Aizu. It can't be easy for her up there, and even in five years, she had a lot to think about,~ Sanosuke reminded himself. Though he knew of and long since had forgiven her for her actions in the past, as did Kenshin, she herself was apparently still having a much harder time of it.

"I don't suppose you've ever heard of Takeda Kanryuu," she said.

"I'd heard the name. He was connected with an opium ring, among other crimes. About five or six years ago."

Megumi nodded at Hiko. "I was the one who made the opium for him."

Kenshin's eyes were on Megumi, but Sano was watching Hiko. Other than making a small sound of acknowledgment, he didn't seem fazed. Sano wondered what was going on in the man's mind, as Megumi spoke further, if indirectly, of the three years of indignities and abuse she had suffered at his hands.

~So that's why that comment about spanking set them all off so,~ Hiko mused. ~I should've known this wasn't going to be easy. That wicked laugh and barbed wit hides a lot of pain. Do I really want to deal with that in a wife?~

"But just when things got really bad for her, she made a break for it. Naturally, she knew to come to us for help." Sano interrupted the somber silence with a cocky grin.

"Umm… Sano, she found us by chance."

"It was destiny," he said. "She was meant to find us, because who better to help then the great Sagara Sanosuke? Oh yeah, and you too, Kenshin." He smirked at his friend.

Kenshin glowered back even as he saw what Sanosuke was doing. "Oh yeah? Who was it who was griping about going after Megumidono and had to be prodded into it?"

"But who was it who heroically saved the damsel in the most dire distress at her darkest moment?"

Megumi looked back and forth between the two friends. She was the last to catch on to their game; Hiko had figured it out almost as soon as Sanosuke had first spoken and was watching her. It seemed oddly out of character for them. Only when she realized that Sanosuke, in his own unique way, was trying to lighten the mood did she begin to shake her head.

"I didn't believe you could take on Kanryuu's men," she interjected archly. "And if you do remember, Sanosuke, I did go for the man with a sword."

"Yeah, the guys with the obvious weaponry always get the girls…" Sanosuke grumbled, not entirely mockingly.

"Maa, maa," Kenshin said with a wicked grin. His wife would have been shocked to see it. "It's hardly your fault that this one's sword was more suited to her needs."

"So how was your lunch," Sanosuke said without seeming to miss a beat. Megumi was struggling not to blush and Hiko had raised both eyebrows. The sheer if subtle ribaldry of that comment was so out of line for his former pupil… But then, looking at Megumi again, he realized that both men were still trying to shock Megumi out of the dark mood that his own inadvertent comment had induced. While he had remained silent during the banter, she had been composing herself and struggling to regain the lightness of the earlier mood.

"He ordered the plain soba," Megumi said. "I can only think of one other person who even likes plain soba," she said, shaking her head.

"If one thinks about it, those two men have a surprising amount of things in common," Kenshin said. He didn't look enthusiastic.

"You're one to talk, ordering the Kitsune udon. I hardly call that exotic fare."

Kenshin smiled slightly as Sano stared at Megumi.

"Don't you dare laugh," she growled.

He snorted. It turned into a snicker.

"Tori-atama, I'm warning you…"

Snickers exploded into a full-bellied guffaw.

"This is the part where he loses consciousness," Kenshin sighed as Megumi cast about for something suitably heavy; finding nothing, she settled on her kinchaku and swung the small handbag directly at Sanosuke's head.

Once again, Hiko's hand enclosed her wrist, holding her back effortlessly.

Sanosuke was blinking up at her, still snickering. "You know, you used to accuse Jouchan of being violent. Looks like it wore off on you," he smirked.

She ignored him, glaring once again at Hiko Seijuurou whose fingers seemed too warm against her skin.

"Sano, it doesn't look like she even heard you," he murmured as his mentor's eyes met and held his friend's. Though hers sparked with indignation and his with contempt, there was an undercurrent that made him wonder if she hadn't provoked him deliberately. It wasn't that she had been trying to hit Sanosuke; he could tell she wasn't truly angry with him.

The moment stretched, and Hiko still held Megumi's wrist in the air. Knowing his Shishou was not at all into prolonging contact as a general rule, Kenshin could no longer fight the sinking sensation in his stomach. ~Kenji is NOT calling her grandmother. No way in hell. Well, considering that I never called Shishou anything but Shishou, it won't ever be mentioned if I can help it. But more importantly, will being with him make her happy?~ He looked from the glaring pair to his friend, whose face was rapidly losing all traces of amusement.

~Oh, Sano. You've had countless opportunities to tell her. You manufactured most of them yourself. But like me, you became so comfortable with the way things were that you never dreamed that if they changed, they might change for the better. You may have waited too long…~ His thoughts and the tension were both interrupted by a loud noise from the room where Kenji had been napping.

"Oh, the baby's awake," Kenshin said, grateful for the interruption. "Shishou, can you lend me a hand? Please?"

"I highly doubt you need my assistance with your child," Hiko said, but he was curious. Why would his pupil make such a request?

Then again, he was the one who had stated a wish to have a child of his own to whom he might pass Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu. It might not hurt to refresh his memory of what it was like to have a young child around. Besides, the young punk clearly wanted to talk to the doctor. Without so much as a glance in Sanosuke's direction, Hiko let go of Megumi's wrist and swept out of the room behind Kenshin.

Sanosuke watched them leave. ~I'm out of time. It's now or never. She's going to go back to Aizu soon either way. And if I don't take my chance now, that arrogant geezer is going to win her. I can see it happening. He hasn't even been here a whole day, and she's already fallin' for his... Whatever it is she sees in him. Arrogant prick. Why does it feel like whenever I'm around her, I'm still the same stupid nineteen year old kid who she left behind...?~ "Oiy, Kitsune."

Megumi raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong?"

"Why does somethin' have to be wrong?" ~Don't get defensive, you idiot! Man up!~

Megumi resumed her seat, folding her hands neatly in her lap. Had he not witnessed her flare of temper a moment before, he'd never have guessed that she was struggling to keep her own emotions in check. "You spoke to me. I can only assume either you're injured, you're hungry, or there's a problem."

He stared at her. For a long moment it looked as though he was about to flare up in response, but then a slow grin cracked across his face. "Yeah, I guess I have kinda made a habit of that. You'd think after all those years I'd've grown up some. But that's just it. Fox, around you, I'm the kid I was, not the person I became while I was away."

The doctor looked at him blankly.

Sanosuke stood, shaking his head. "That guy in there," he said, jerking his chin towards where Kenshin had gone with Hiko, "wants a wife. I want you." He couldn't look at her as he spoke the words. For a long moment he focused on the floor. "I want you, Takani Megumi," he said again, this time focusing his gaze on her.

She had gone completely white with shock. She stared at him even as she staggered to her feet. Suddenly she turned and ran out the door, her shoes forgotten at the gate.

"That didn't go as you expected, did it," Hiko smirked from behind him. Beyond him, Kenshin wore an expression halfway between mortified and apologetic. Kenji, in his father's arms, rubbed his eyes in sleepy confusion.

Wordlessly, Sanosuke punched a large hole in the wall before he left, following a different direction from that which Megumi had taken.

"Your wife isn't going to be too happy about that," Hiko said mildly. Giving his mentor a dirty look, Kenshin also said nothing.

[AN]I really hate it when I throw a twist at the characters, and they turn it around and throw it back even more warped… This has rapidly progressed into something much longer and more complex than I originally intended. It got to be more serious, too, as it progressed. I've been trying to get it back on track. I started it maybe a couple of years ago, then it sat and languished, untouched… Hope you're enjoying the ride! (I promise it does get lighter in tone again…)[/AN]


	7. Chapter 7

_Part VI – Everything You Know is Wrong _

"He What?" Kaoru looked both indignant and amused. Indignant on Megumi's behalf, and amused by her friend's own irritation. "Sanosuke said THAT?" Her eyes sparkled with amusement, which won over the irritation.

"I don't see what's so funny," Megumi fumed.

"I don't see what isn't," Kaoru countered. "Think about it, Megumisan." She took another bite of her noodles. Oguni Genzai had brought a message to her that Megumi wanted to meet her for dinner - her alone. No Boys Allowed. Kaoru, only too grateful for the rare chance to see her friend, had enthusiastically reinforced that distinction to her husband and their guests. Now, for the second time that day, Megumi was at her favorite little out of the way noodle stand, indulging herself in the Kitsune Udon that was her favorite comfort food. Kaoru was shaking her head as she spoke. "For a woman who was so concerned that she'd never find someone, as a doctor, you're doing pretty well for yourself."

Megumi's cheeks flushed. "Given a choice between the tori-atama, and being a trophy wife to that arrogant, overmuscled..."

"You're repeating yourself," Kaoru pointed out. "Besides, I know he doesn't show it much in front of you, but Sanosuke's grown a lot in the last five years. You intimidate him, Megumisan. You intimidate a lot of people," she added wryly, "but him more so than most. And there are those who think you and Hikosan make a very handsome couple."

"Well, I admit he's not completely unattractive. But he's so arrogant!"

Kaoru couldn't help the slight smirk that fought its way past her sympathetic look. "Well, if you'll forgive me, Megumisan, you aren't always the shy retiring sort yourself."

"Well, of course not! I'm a doctor. I don't have time for false modesty!"

Kaoru wisely kept her mouth shut.

"I don't want to choose between them. I feel like they're forcing me to make a choice. I barely know Sanosuke anymore," she admitted softly, "and I don't know Hikosan at all. One day and one date is hardly basis for a marriage. You and Kensan took your time about it, after all." Kaoru did not miss the flicker in Megumi's eyes as she mentioned Kenshin's name with her own in the same breath. She had accepted Megumi's "surrender"; both women knew that one's heart could not choose what it wanted. It simply wanted. And Megumi had never stopped loving Kenshin. Though she might move on, her heart would always hold a special place for him. Such was the nature of love.

"That's true," Kaoru shook her head, "but I don't think you want to wait that long." She made a face. "I certainly didn't!"

Megumi shook her head in response. "No. I want them both to go away right now. Oh. And thank you for bringing me my shoes." Both women laughed.

"So how did you find this place, Megumisan?"

"A patient's uncle owns it," she said. "As much as I enjoy the Akabeko, sometimes you want to go where everyone does not know your name."

Kaoru nodded. "I understand that. You can't even imagine how grateful I am to get out of the house! I worry about leaving the men alone, but at the same time I'm very glad to get away from them."

~It can't be much easier for her than it is for me, sometimes. Opposite ends of the spectrum, and yet we share the same pain.~ "No privacy," Megumi said aloud. "Not a moment to yourself. And how much worse could it be if I were married? Sometimes, for all of that, I don't envy you."

Kaoru blinked at Megumi in surprise. "Megumisan..."

"I'm serious. Kaoruchan, I never bothered pretending that I don't envy you. You have things I always imagined I wanted. But now that the chance has arisen, all I want to do is run back to Aizu and pretend none of it ever happened." The rueful grin she offered didn't last.

"Well, it's not as if it's an easy choice," Kaoru conceded. "I mean, after all these years, suddenly now Sano speaks up? I'd think Hikosan did it on purpose to provoke something but there's no way he would do such a thing. He's too proud," she grinned. "Both of them are, really. Sano punched a huge hole in the wall again after you left. Apparently Hiko heard what he said to you."

Indignation flashed on the older woman's features, only to be replaced by resignation. "Do you think I could just go back now without anyone noticing?"

"You really have changed. There was a time you would have expected this as your due," Kaoru said, only half-teasing.

"Well, it IS," Megumi tosses her hair with a grin. "It's just a lot more trouble than it's worth. It would be different if either one of them were Kensan," she smirked. Kaoru shook her head, amused. Megumi's grin faded. "But to choose between the likes of Sanosuke and Hiko Seijuurou... I could see becoming friendly with the man, although he doesn't have much use for people. But a wife? And Sanosuke! We've both changed over the years, and while I grant the man is attractive, I certainly hope he doesn't think attraction is enough to found a marriage. I don't know him anymore. And neither one of them knows me."

"And you're afraid if they did, they wouldn't want you anymore?"

Once again Megumi's temper began to flare, and once again she stopped herself. "That's not even it, which is as much of a surprise to me as it is to you," she smirked at Kaoru's flabbergasted expression. "It's more that I'm afraid they both want someone more like Kensan."

Kaoru's eyes widened. "More like... Kenshin...?" Her eyes continued to widen as an image of Hiko and Sanosuke making doe eyes at her husband began to form itself in her brain. "You mean... they're..."

"No, silly girl," Megumi rolled her eyes. "They want someone to fulfill the role of a traditional wife. Someone to cook and clean and take care of them. Which, unfortunately for them, is what I need. A wife." Megumi made a face. "Kensan is the only man I've ever net who hasn't run in terror at the very concept. At least Yahiko's learned some of that from you two," she shook her head in amusement.

"If he hadn't, he would never have had any training." Kaoru smirked. "Bad enough Sanosuke was always freeloading... You're right. I can't see him doing housework. He barely kept his own apartment habitable. He has changed, Megumisan. He really is different when you're not around."

"That's the problem. When I'm around, he seems to be exactly the same lazy bum he was when I left for Aizu five years ago." Megumi sighed. "No, I think I'm better off alone. It's not an easy life, but a husband would not make it easier."

"Oh, Megumisan," Kaoru sighed sympathetically. "I don't envy you in the least." She sank into thought for a long moment. "But I do have to say that Hikosan looks frighteningly good for a forty-eight year old man. He doesn't look much older than Kenshin at all."

Megumi shook her head in consternation. "I admit that is intriguing. I'd like to examine him. I can't figure out what makes them tick. Why should Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu make them look so much younger than anyone else their age? Kensan hasn't used it in five years and he still looks barely into his twenties. Hikosan is twenty-one years older than I am and looks like he's my age! If anything, I'd think that the speed they use would make them age faster. But-"

"Umm, Megumisan?" Kaoru looked a little panicky.

"Oh! Sorry, Kaoruchan. I guess I do get a little carried away where medicine is involved."

Kaoru smiled at her friend. "Just a little."

Megumi ran a hand through her hair. "I don't know what to do."

"I don't think I've ever seen you look so lost, Megumisan." ~And the truth is, it makes me a little nervous. You've always been so composed, even when you lose your temper.~ "I wish there were something I could do to help..."

Megumi smiled gratefully, looking very tired. "Me too, Kaoruchan."

The women finished their meal in silence, lost in their own thoughts. Kaoru's mind drifted from Megumi's problem. "I wonder what the boys have been up to," she said as they paid their tab.

And well she might. Upon delivering Megumi's message, Oguni Genzai had set himself down to watch the fireworks. Sano had decided to move back into the apartment he had given to Yahiko while Hiko stayed at the dojo. It wasn't that there wasn't enough physical space, but he did not want to share a room with Hiko Seijuurou.

"Are you sure, Sano?" Kenshin eyed his old friend skeptically. "There isn't very much room there..."

"I'm sure Yahiko won't mind stayin' here, but really, Kenshin, you can't honestly expect me to stay under the same roof with him... Not after that." Sanosuke looked embarrassed and angry as he thought about what had occurred more than an hour earlier.

Hiko had gone for a walk, under the excuse that he wanted some time alone. He had told his former student that he would be dining with them upon his return. Kenshin had believed the man's excuse that he had had enough "annoying personal contact" for the time being, but with Sanosuke's return, wondered if his master was perhaps not just seeking his own solitude - but granting his rival some privacy. ~Of course. NOW he would. Not before.~ But even as the uncharitable thought crossed his mind, Kenshin realized that such was the point. Hiko had already ascertained that Sanosuke had feelings for Megumi. He'd wanted to know how she would react.

However, Kenshin had wrangled a promise from Hiko that the man would not go anywhere near the direction Kaoru had headed. While Kaoru had mellowed, somewhat, in the past few years, it was still his hide from which she'd extract payment. As it was, he had somehow been granted the sole responsibility of repairing the wall. While he had been working, Sano had come by, taken one look at the slight redhead working on the damage he'd inflicted, sighed, and told him to sit down and play with his kid.

"I did the crime, guess I gotta do the time." He had completed the repair in surprisingly little time, and done a fairly solid (if not completely seamless) job of it. Now he and Kenshin were working on smoothing over the edges and repainting. Kenji was rediscovering the joys of mud pies. Kenshin cringed at the thought of the extra work he'd have to do on the laundry. By now, however, he was used to it, though at times it wore thin. But as his friend had said, he'd done the crime... ~Fatherhood is its own lifelong punishment. Worth it, but not always easy.~

Neither man had said a word from the time Sanosuke joined him until they were working on the finishing touches of the wall, when the tall man had mentioned his desire to leave the dojo he'd stayed at for three months.

"I can't see Hiko stayin' at an inn, not when he can bum off of you for free," Sanosuke said with a knowing smirk. "But I can't stay under the same roof as him right now either. Kenshin, I wish I'd never said anything to her. I REALLY wish no one else had heard it. But damnit, I meant it, I meant every word. The kid called it. He knew I'd be following her back to Aizu eventually. I don't know if I loved her then, but I do now. And no matter what she decides, I always will. I'm not the kid who ran from the law five years ago. But she's not the same woman either. I need to know if the woman I love is the woman I know."

Kenshin stared at his friend, his eyes wide. "Sano... Can this one be honest with you?"

"I didn't know you could be anything else." Sano's smirk evoked a smile from Kenshin.

"Well... This one is a little leery of the whole situation. Megumidono is a trusted friend, but Shishou..." Kenshin looked uncomfortable. "Shishou's always been like a father," he muttered, "and this one does not wish Megumidono to fill the role of a stepmother figure."

Now it was Sanosuke's turn to stare in complete befuddlement as Kenshin's words sunk in. As Kenshin stewed in discomfort, the younger man's eyes began to bug out of his head and his lips quirked oddly.

"Shut up," Kenshin glowered. It was the last straw. Sagara Sanosuke threw his head back and laughed as he had not in a long time. He laughed until tears streamed from his eyes and he could no longer stand on his own. Doubled over against the wall, he slowly tilted over onto his side, curling up and chuckling madly when laughing hurt too much. Kenji wandered over and jumped on his "Uncle". giggling as madly as that adored man, while Kenshin got redder and redder. The intervention of his son prevented him from decking his friend, although he was tempted indeed.

"Are you QUITE done yet," he growled as the earthquake of amusement finally seemed to subside.

"Megu... Megu... Ss... Ste... Step... Moth... mother... other.. Megumi!" Sanosuke managed to choke out before dissolving into an aftershock of snickers.

"If you ever say anything about this to anyone, it will be the very last thing you say," Kenshin growled.

"Sorry, Kenshin," Sano choked out as he tried valiantly to regain his composure. "Sorry. It's just... The Kitsune as your -"

"DON'T." Kenshin's glare narrowed further, and Sanosuke began to realize that the man really was genuinely annoyed about his own reaction.

"You're somethin' else, Kenshin," the younger man grinned. "I won't say a word, but you do realize that all you have to do is point that little detail out to her and she would almost certainly leave the country before ever so much as talkin' to him again. Not that I'd complain about that part."

Kenshin opened his mouth and inhaled, then thought about it... "You may have a point there," he conceded. "It's preferred that Megumidono not leave the country, but this one would not complain if there were some way to convince Shisou to seek his... bride elsewhere."

Sanosuke's grin widened at the way Kenshin shuddered at the word "bride". He wasn't inclined to argue, though he had his own reasons, but something niggled at him. "Oiy, Kenshin?"

"What is it?"

Long brown hair hung over lowered features. "There's one thing... What if he could really make her happy?"

Kenshin visibly flinched, though whether it was the idea of his friend finding happiness with his teacher, or the other ramifications - most notably, Sanosuke's having been the one to bring it up. Kenshin had already considered the possibility but he knew how much even voicing that possibility must cost his friend. At the same time, his respect for the man went up even further; the Sanosuke of old would have been more inclined to barrel in, eyes and fists blazing, to win Megumi's heart and make himself her happiness. That the man before him now could even consider something like that... "It would be foolish of Megumidono not to consider all of her options," he said cautiously. "Yet this one cannot help but think that if you are as serious about this as Shishou seems to be, you should show her directly."

"You mean take her on a date?"

"Yes. But Sano, just now you asked if it is possible that Shishou could make her happy. This one is concerned for the happiness of his friends... Shishou probably wants a traditional wife, who will cater to him. Megumidono is not a very traditional woman. What is it you want in a wife?"

Sanosuke stared at the floor. "If you'd asked me that even three months ago, I would've said I want a traditional wife too. I'm not much good at most household stuff," he admitted with a rueful grin.

"Really? This one never noticed," Kenshin said, picking up his mud-covered son at arm's length. "Come, Kenji, let's get you cleaned up before your mother gets home and makes us both pay for this mess as well. Want to help, Sano?"

The look on the tall young man's face was priceless.

"If you want to prove yourself suitable marriage material for Megumidono..." The wicked grin gracing Kenshin's face did nothing to improve Sanosuke's mood. "Besides, it's only mud. It could be worse," Kenshin added cheerfully.

He covered his young son's ears rather than let the child hear what Sano was muttering as he followed the redhead inside.

"You know it makes sense."

Sanosuke continued to glare as Kenshin piled Kenji's muddy clothes into the disgruntled man's hands. "I know how to do laundry."

"You've never demonstrated that for as long as we've known you."

"That doesn't mean I don't know how. But, y'know, since you're always kind enough to do it..." The tall young man grinned unrepentantly. "I was always raised to be polite."

Kenshin looked skeptical.

"I didn't say it was a success," Sanosuke shrugged, grinning shamelessly.

Unable to find a good comeback that wouldn't get him flattened, Kenshin just shook his head.


	8. Chapter 8

_Part VII – Twister_

Megumi had returned to the clinic from her dinner with Kaoru calmer than she had been when she left, if no less confused, only to find Hiko deep in conversation with her mentor. Judging by their expressions, this did not bode well for her... Especially the way they stopped speaking as soon as she appeared.

"Ahh, Megumikun, welcome back! Did you have a nice dinner?" Oguni Genzai wore an absolutely innocent expression. Hiko wore his characteristic smirk.

"It was perfectly fine until I got back. What are you two up to?"

"Hikosan and I were just discussing the likelihood of -"

"Snow," the large man cut the doctor off.

"Snow," Megumi echoed flatly. "It's far too early in the season."

"It did just get a bit colder in here, didn't it Hikosan?" Genzaisensei's expression looked even more desperately innocent.

"A bit, perhaps."

Megumi's icy glare swiveled back and forth between the two men. Still, in the back of her mind, the fascination of Hiko's and Kenshin's apparent youth nagged at her, especially as she compared Kenshin's mentor with her own. "Genzaisensei, how often do you give Kensan a checkup?"

"Hmm? Oh, every month. Same as for everyone."

"Have you ever noticed anything different about him?"

Genzai blinked. "I... can't... think of anything... particular," he said very slowly, as his mind turned to the topic. "He heals amazingly quickly, and he seems to have stabilized quite well since he recovered from that last battle. And yes, I did notice that he and his mentor both seem to have thwarted the aging process rather nicely, although in my examinations of Kenshin, I've never noticed anything beyond his resilience - and to be honest, I think young Sanosuke has more of that than even Kenshin. And yet he seems to be aging normally."

Hiko watched the two doctors discourse with detached amusement, wondering what had suddenly brought this up.

"Hikosan, I'd like to examine you. Genzaisensei, I'd like you to examine him first. Then I'd like to compare notes." Without another word, she retreated to the office she was sharing with the older man for the duration of her visit, leaving them to shrug in bewilderment at one another.

"This should be interesting," Hiko snorted.

"Actually, I think it should," Genzai said, not sarcastically. "I won't charge for it, this one time, in the interests of medical progress." He grinned. "Come this way. It shouldn't take very long," he said as he rose. Leading Hiko into one of the examination rooms, he grabbed a blank chart to take notes as he worked.

"I do hope I don't regret this."

"Look at the bright side. Megumisan will examine you. If nothing else, that will give you some time to see her at work. Frankly, Hikosan, if you're serious about marrying my own former student, you should understand that medicine is important to her. Between her family history and her own, she wouldn't be the same person if not for her work. I do know she could never be a traditional wife, so if that's what you truly want, you'd best look elsewhere."

Hiko only grunted. It's what he'd thought he wanted, but since his arrival - had it truly been that morning? - he had rapidly become more than just intrigued by this untraditional, unpredictable woman. A traditional wife would have catered to his needs as unobtrusively as possible, leaving him his precious solitude. But was that, after all, what he still wanted?

Megumi did not hear their conversation. She was absorbed in studying Kenshin's chart spreading over the past six years, scrutinizing her own notes and Genzaisensei's. When Kaoru had mentioned the same idea that had been padding around the back of her mind, she'd fixed on the concept and begun to wonder if there really was something to the Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu/Fountain of Youth theory. It seemed preposterous but Kensan seemed so much younger in spite of not having used the techniques in years, and his sensei did not look anywhere remotely near fifty. Yet as she studied the chart, comparing it mentally with other patients', she could not discern any significant differences between Kenshin's normal vitals and anyone else's. It would have to wait, she supposed, until she could examine Hiko Seijuurou. She sighed.

That particular aspect did not enthuse her. The man was insufferable, and far too perceptive. And the worst part, as far as she was concerned, was that he was not totally unattractive... ~And he's also pompous, crude, arrrogant, bossy... ~ Megumi sighed. Many times she'd heard all of those adjectives applied to her as well. Except possibly crude. Not that she would ever admit it aloud, but to herself she had to admit that the brave facade she put on did seem to be a little bit... self-absorbed. If she had to give the benefit of the doubt to Hiko, it might not be impossible that he used arrogance as a front to hide his own insecurities.

~Or he could just be a pompous recluse.~

Pushing her hair back from her face, she was startled by Genzai's knock at the doorway. "Megumikun, I've finished my examination of Hikosan. Take your time and we can compare notes later," he said cheerfully. "I won't skew your results by saying anything about my findings."

"Thank you, Sensei," she smiled.

"Are you all right, Megumikun? You look troubled."

"It has been rather an eventful day, and it isn't yet over," she pointed out.

"That's true. Would you like me to be present during your examination?"

"Thank you. But my personal feelings aside, I am a physician first. This much at least I can do. I hope."

The old man smiled. "You'll be fine. You are a consummate professional. As long as he doesn't say anything stupid." The smile melted into a smirk.

"Truly, do you think he won't?" With a flip of her hair, she left the office and a highly amused Oguni Genzai.

"I'd sit in for the entertainment factor," he said to the empty walls, "but I think they both need this examination to take place." His smile faded as he hoped that his idea didn't backfire too badly.

"Thank you for being so patient," Megumi said to Hiko as she entered the examination room. He was up on the bed, his cloak spread beneath him as though he was too good for their clean sheets. Now that her medical mentality was at the forefront, it was the back of her mind that noted just how broad his shoulders were, how well his short sleeves showed off the extremely well defined musculature of his arms, how his lips looked so sensual... The rational doctor in her head grabbed those thoughts and hurriedly bound them up in a very bulky plaster cast, marked "DO NOT USE", much as she had bound Sanosuke's hand so long ago...

"Like you two gave me a choice," he muttered sullenly.

"You have to admit, Hikosan, you're a fascinating specimen from a medical viewpoint."

The smirk returned. "Medically or otherwise, I am an impressive specimen, aren't I."

Megumi closed her eyes and sighed. "Let's find out." Without another word, she pulled the watch from her sleeve and grabbed his wrist in the other hand. She watched the second hand intently as she counted his leisurely pulse. She glanced at his face once and was surprised to notice that he seemed to be focused intently on something over her shoulder - until she realized his eyes were not focusing on anything in the room.

"Stop that."

"Stop what?" he asked blandly.

"Stop inducing a meditative state. I want your normal vital sign readings, not trance state statistics."

"Sorry," he said in such a way that she knew he was not.

"I'm serious. I want to know how your body works under normal circumstances. A trance state is not normal circumstances."

"You may find that difficult, Doctor." Now the man was definitely smirking, and Megumi didn't like the way he'd emphasized the title.

"And why is that," she asked archly.

"Think about it. I'm a healthy man. You're a very beautiful woman."

She hadn't expected that. Megumi had never deluded herself about her appearance, but for this man, under these circumstances, to state it so baldly... She was flustered. And so she retreated into habit.

Flipping her hair back with a disdainful expression, she turned her back on him. "I am, first and foremost, a physician. This is a medical examination. Have you never been examined by a doctor before?"

"Counting your mentor?"

"Not counting Genzaisensei," she said, even more exasperated.

"Then I'd have to say no."

"No?" Surprise chased away her evident disdain and the underlying discomfort, and she turned back to the man on the bed. "Not once?"

"Not since I was very young, at any rate," he conceded. "Then again, my family did not hold much store by those in the medical profession. My father believed that it was all in the hands of the kami," he said with disgust.

"You don't believe in religion, then?" Megumi herself was not a very spiritually inclined person, preferring instead to believe in hard science, although she observed the formalities. In her opinion, if the gods and spirits did exist, it would do no harm to placate them. And sometimes the rituals themselves were soothing, she had to admit to herself.

"I don't believe in anything but a good sword and a good sake," he said.

"That can't be entirely true," Megumi countered neutrally as she took his pulse again, using the distraction of the conversation to her advantage.

"If I can't interact with it, I don't believe in it," he said curtly. "Take people, for example. Human nature is rather revolting, really. I am disgusted by such as politics and the machinations people employ in order to deceive themselves into thinking that gratifying their own lusts for power ever involves 'the greater good'. Most of the idiots in governmental positions wouldn't know greater good if it bit them."

Megumi found herself unable to argue that point. She was less cynical than Hiko was but if pressed, she was none too thrilled with the Meiji government either. The uprising that had led to its formation had, after all, taken away her family... And fifteen years later, the home of her childhood was still suffering from the viciousness of the wars fought there. "Still," she found herself saying, "I'd like to see what would happen if it did."

"If what did what?"

"The greater good bit them. Preferably somewhere painful."

Her comment surprised a bark of laughter from the man.

"Now, take deep breaths," she said, one eye on the watch as she rested a hand on his shoulder and the other in the middle of his chest. She told herself that she would use her stethoscope later. For now she just wanted his respiratory rate. It was not because she wanted to feel what those muscles felt like.

Incidentally, they were very firm and very warm. And his heart rate was increasing.

Oddly, so was her own.

"Takanisensei," he said softly.

She looked up, startled to realize how close she was actually standing to him. His eyes were burning, boring into hers. She could not look away. One little voice in the back of her mind was cheering her on, while another voice screamed in protest. ~This is a patient. This is supposed to be a medical examination! This is wrong on so many levels!~ She was inclined to agree, except that his lips were already on hers, not tentative at all, as aggressive and definite as the man himself. For once, the cheering voice clubbed the voice of reason into submission as her eyes fluttered closed and her body moved closer to his.

He leaned back a little, pulling her along by the force of his kiss alone. He swung one long leg up on the bed and she followed, kneeling in front of him, leaning over him as he brought his other leg up behind her. His tongue flickered once softly against her lips, so lightly she wasn't even sure she felt it. Her hands rested on his shoulders and the kiss continued. He leaned back farther.

She pushed off of him, leaping from the examination room's bed and crossing the room so quickly that even Hiko was impressed.

"That... That did not happen," she gasped out, staring at him for a long moment before she fled the room.

Blinking in bemusement, his pulse definitely elevated, Hiko cleared his throat. "To the contrary... I believe it did." He wondered to himself why he didn't sound as pleased as he thought he ought to feel. In fact, if forced to admit it, he wasn't entirely sure how he felt either. He had definitely wanted that kiss, enjoyed it, but he hadn't intended it - and he certainly hadn't intended to upset her.

A door slammed shut somewhere, and a moment later Oguni Genzai looked into the examination room. "I don't know what just happened, or what you did or said to Megumikun, but I think it's time you left," he said sternly. He reminded Hiko of an irate father, and on the theory that discretion truly was the better part of valor, he picked up the large white mantle and left without a word.

[AN] I definitely didn't intend that to happen - until I saw someone's depiction of the kiss on dA (the artist took it down due to problems with posting on dA; it is elsewhere online - I'll be happy to direct you for a review! or a PM. ^n_~^ ) and figured I had to write it in. I HAD to. I don't know why but I had to. Does it mean anything? Will Sano stand a chance? Or has this one day whirlwind dashed the ship of his hopes against the rocks? Stay tuned... [/AN]


	9. Chapter 9

_Part VIII – Callin' in Sick_

Sagara Sanosuke paced up and down the street in front of the longhouse. He had come from the Akabeko, where he had been told Yahiko had left a little while before, but the young man was not home yet. He hadn't told his young friend that he would be staying there for the duration of Hiko's visit, as he had not had the chance. He only hoped it wouldn't be a problem, but he could not face staying in the dojo with the man. Sighing in frustration, he borrowed a piece of paper, a brush and ink from a neighbor who had yelled at him to stop pacing.

Quickly, he wrote a note to Yahiko asking the young man to come by the dojo, if he would be kind enough to put him up for a night or two, ad he would explain later. With a bow of thanks, he returned the brush and ink to the neighbor with a small coin -"For the cost of the ink and paper," he'd said. The neighbor had been surprised but grateful. He did not look familiar, but a lot changes in five years, Sano reminded himself. Then he set off for the dojo.

"Ah, Sano. I was wondering what happened to you. It's getting late," Kaoru greeted him as he entered the gate.

"I went for a walk I was thinking I'd stay with Yahiko for a few days. But he wasn't home yet."

"Ah. Sano, are you okay? I heard what happened this afternoon."

The tall man sighed. "Yeah. Fine. Does the whole damn world have to know about it?"

"He's worried about you, baka. You've been back in Japan for three months but you haven't found a job or a place of your own yet. I know you were thinking of trying in Aizu but-"

"What, does everyone know about that too?" Sano's exasperation was more than clear.

"Baka! We're your friends! Of COURSE we do! It's not like you're exactly an expert at hiding your feelings."

"Heh. I guess I always have been a pretty open guy about stuff like that." He didn't look happy.

"To say the least. But Sanosuke... We are all worried about you. And when Megumisan told me what happened, this afternoon, I had a feeling you'd prefer not to stay under the same roof as Hikosan." The smile she offered him was full of understanding.

"Wait, SHE told you? What did she tell you?"

Kaoru thought for a second. "Well... She said that Kenshin had dragged Hikosan in to help him with Kenji." She giggled at the thought. "I can only imagine what the look on his face was then! And that you said that Hikosan only wants a wife, but that you want to be with Megumisan no matter what. And that Hikosan was there when you said it. And that she ran out."

Spiky hair bobbed as Sanosuke nodded. "Yeah. He heard. But I did help Kenshin fix the hole in the wall."

"Hole in the wall? What hole in the wall?"

"No hole. There was no hole." Grinning feebly, he didn't look like he expected her to believe him.

"You punched another hole in the wall?"

"We fixed it! You can't even really tell it was there! Except the plaster's not totally dry yet," Sano amended.

Kaoru shook her head at him in disbelief. "I knew about the hole. I'm surprised at you. You've changed a lot in the five years when you were gone. You're much calmer. Except when she's around. Do you really think that's a good thing?"

Sanosuke looked at the young woman, startled. "What? No, of course I... It's just that she..." He trailed off, looking suddenly lost.

Impulsively, Kaoru reached out and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. When she left, and you fled the country, there was still a lot unresolved between you two. And she really isn't used to the idea of a man being okay with her being a doctor. Remember when we all first met her, how fragile she was?"

"That woman is no more fragile than you and Kenshin combined."

Kaoru smiled ruefully. "That's nice of you to say, but it just proves my point. Back then, I would have agreed with you. But now, I know better, and so should you. Megumisan was ready to die, by her own hand or by the law, for the life she'd led. She was afraid and alone. She hadn't had so much as one friend in so long that she didn't believe there was any hope at all. And like a lot of people, she had learned to hide her fear and loneliness behind a facade of bravery and, in her case, naughtiness.

"But Sanosuke, she's been working as a doctor for the last five years in Aizu, which is still recovering from the bakumatsu. She's been largely on her own and while I'm sure she's made friends, she's afraid to let people in. And suddenly to have a man like Hikosan inform her - INFORM her! Inform HER!- that she is going to be his wife... And then on the same day to have you tell her you want to be with her... Well, in her shoes, wouldn't you be at least a little upset?"

Sanosuke hung his head. "I never thought about it that way."

"Thought about what what way?" Kenshin appeared in the doorway, an oddly quiet Hiko behind him. The redhead set down the full shopping basket he carried and stretched.

"Nothing," Sanosuke interjected.

"Shishou was on his way back from the clinic. Genzaisensei and Megumidono think that Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu has something to do with why we both look so much younger than we are," Kenshin said.

"You mean it doesn't?" Kaoru asked.

Kenshin shrugged. "Honestly, it's as good a reason as any."

"Unless you two are some weird kind of mutant," Kaoru said thoughtfully.

Kenshin shrugged, smiling mildly, but Hiko said nothing, continuing to simmer.

"Shishou wouldn't say why he's in such a dark mood, either," he confided more softly to his wife.

"Did something happen at the clinic? Are Genzaisensei and Megumisan all right?"

"They're fine. I think I'd like to rest," the large man said abruptly. He strode inside to the room that he had originally been set to share with Sanosuke.

"Maybe one of us should go by the clinic?"

Sanosuke stood. "I'll go. I left a note for Yahiko that I'd be here. He'll probably come lookin' for me."

"Are you sure it's a good idea for you to go?"

"Probably not," he said with a lopsided grin as he turned toward the gate. "But I'm definitely not the one who's goin' to talk to that guy."

Kenshin and Kaoru shared a look as their friend strode out the gate.

"Do you want me to go?" Kaoru looked distinctly unimpressed at the idea even as she offered. The hopeful look on her husband's face did nothing to improve her outlook, but she sighed. "Fine. You wait for Yahiko."

Kaoru went to the still-open doorway of the room serving as their guest quarters for the time being. "Excuse me, Hikosan? Is everything all right?"

The man sat on his futon, still fully dressed, his back to the door. He did not respond.

"Did something happen at the dojo?"

"That woman..." His voice came out as a low growl. "That woman..."

"What about that woman?"

"That woman is a demon."

"What? Megumisan? She may be difficult sometimes, but she's no demon."

Before she could blink, Hiko was on his feet, glaring down at her superciliously. "No mortal woman could wreak such havoc with a man's senses the way that woman does. No mortal woman would dare to try it with me!" He sounded especially indignant at that last idea.

"You don't deal with women very much, do you," Kaoru said, not allowing him to intimidate her.

"What? I don't deal with anyone very much. But my dealings with women have always been... Satisfactory." Again, he smirked.

"Well, you're handsome enough, I suppose," Kaoru said cynically, and looked him over. Eyeing him as she might a potential student, she had to admit to herself that there wasn't very much on the surface that left room for improvement. If you liked the tall, broad-shouldered, well-muscled sort. "And what else is there?"

He didn't respond verbally.

"Hikosan, you may have been Kenshin's teacher, and I respect you for that, but you yourself chose a life largely apart from people. I'm sure you have a reason for that, and I respect that too. But most women don't 'wreak havoc with a man's senses', as you put it, deliberately. When they do, it's usually for a good reason. So why don't you tell me what happened, because depression just doesn't look good on you."

"Nothing doesn't look good on me," Hiko harrumphed.

"I'm a married woman, Hikosan."

"What?"

"Never mind. So what happened?" Kaoru leaned on the doorframe as Hiko resumed his seat.

"I don't see that it's any of your business."

"And you know I'm going to find out from Megumisan anyway. Do you want to tell me your side of things first?" Kaoru had her "I'm the Mom" face on.

Hiko was impressed. The little girl sensei was a very different person than she'd seemed five years before. At the time he'd met her, she had just been some little hanger-on who had followed his baka deshi from Tokyo without knowing exactly what she was getting into. But she had held her own then, and against rather desperate odds. Now, she had married his foolish pupil, was running the dojo which once more seemed to be successful, and had borne a son. Though the child was quite young, she seemed to have the whole maternal act pretty well down.

"Your medical friends decided to give me an examination. Separately. I believe they wished to compare notes with each other to ascertain, between the results of my physical and those of my baka deshi, whether Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu was responsible for our apparent youth."

"That may be partly my fault. I was discussing that with Megumisan at dinner."

Hiko cocked an eyebrow but did not comment about that. "The first examination went well. Genzaisensei is a very competent physician."

The silence began to stretch. "And?"

"Takanisensei is a very beautiful woman."

There was absolutely no change to the man's expression, but Kaoru thought she detected a hint of color on his cheeks. "Something happened." She struggled to maintain her composure.

So did Hiko but for entirely different reasons. "To be honest, I'm not entirely sure which one of us started it. But she is definitely the one who ended it."

"Ended what?"

"The kiss."

Kaoru gaped at him wordlessly.

Not knowing any of this, Sanosuke had arrived at the clinic only to be met by the gentle but firm obstacle of Oguni Genzaisensei.

"Megumikun is not in the mood for company, Sano," he cautioned. "I really don't think it would be a good idea for you to try to speak with her now."

"I gotta make sure she's okay," Sano said, apparently willing to risk the danger.

"I'm more worried for your own safety," the old doctor said, removing his cap to reveal the bandage he'd wrapped around his own head.

"What happened to you?"

"It seems Megumikun really, REALLY doesn't wish to speak to anyone." Replacing the cap, he sighed. "And that was my favorite vase, too."

Sano thought for a moment, then grinned. "My hair's much thicker. My head, too, so I think I'll risk it."

"It's your funeral," the old doctor said as he stepped back from the doorway.

"At least I'll go down fightin'," the younger man muttered as he knocked on the door behind which Megumi had secured herself. "Oiy, Kitsune, open up."

"Go away," came a muffled voice though the door.

"I ain't leavin' until I know you're okay."

"I'm fine, go away."

"Did he hurt you?"

There was no answer.

Fury began to build in him once more. ~If he hurt her, I'll kill him.~ "Open up or I will," he called.

The door opened, barely. "There, it's open, now go away." She began to close it but he stuck his hand in the crack.

"That's my right hand, Kitsune. You want to fix it again, go ahead and slam the door. Otherwise, let me in so we can make sure you're all right."

There was a long moment where he began to fear that she would indeed slam the door on his hand, but then the pressure on her side disappeared and he was able to open the door completely. He stepped into the room - it was one of the exam rooms - and surveyed the damage.

Surprisingly, there was very little. Megumi's blue michiyuki jacket was bundled on one end of the rumpled bed, and the stool near the door told him how she'd managed to wedge it closed. She'd clearly been crying, although she looked uninjured and none too happy to see him.

"So what happened, if he didn't hurt you?"

"Get on the table," she said, not looking at him.

"What?"

Wordlessly, she pointed to the examination table from which she'd just removed the blue jacket. Shrugging, Sanosuke followed directions.

Just as silently, Megumi placed a hand on his shoulder, and another on his chest, and stood as close to him as she had to her last patient.

And his mind shut down. Her hand trembled slightly against his chest. His heart sped up. "Megumi..."

She looked up, and he swallowed. She was so close... But her eyes were shadowed. "I was examining him, just like this, to check his heart rate and his breathing."

"He ki... He kissed you." The words rushed out in a choked gargle. Now she was not the only one shaking, but he forced himself to rein in his rage. And still she stood close, not backing away, not removing her hand from his bare skin.

"Yes."

"Kitsune... If you don't step back, I don't think I'll be able to keep from doin' it myself."

"Maybe you should." Though her words were flip, her eyes were still hidden. He raised a hand to her wrist, and pushed her away.

"No. I shouldn't. It's wrong." In a flash, he was on his feet. "And I ain't gonna do that to you. Not sure what I'm gonna do to him, either."

"No."

"No?"

Megumi shook her head. "No. Sano... I don't know what's going on. I don't know what to do. But I don't think it's a good idea for you to fight him."

"What, worried about me, Kitsune?" The quick grin faded as rapidly as it had appeared. "Or about him?"

She turned away and did not reply immediately. She took her time putting the michiyuki coat on over her kimono. "I thought you ought to have the same chance he had. I had hoped it might clarify things."

He watched her. "Did it?"

She shook her head.

"The solution is obvious to me, Megumikun," Genzai said as she led the way back to the waiting room, where he had indeed been waiting for them. Megumi looked at him without much enthusiasm.

It was Sano who answered. "What is it, old man?"

"Megumikun should marry me!" The grin that crossed his face had nothing of innocence in it.

Sano raised his hands. "He's all yours, Kitsune," he smirked. When the smoke cleared, the old man huddled in a twitching pile of pain.

"Somebody call a doctor..." he whimpered.

"You are the doctor," said a new voice from the doorway. "Talk about your deja vu. Something tells me I don't want to know what happened here."

"Hey, kid. No, you probably don't."

Megumi brushed her hands together and brushed past him with a curt nod.

"It feels so oddly familiar, though," Yahiko grinned.

"At least I know my plan worked this time," Genzai said as he staggered to his feet.

"Plan?"

"To bring Megumikun out of her mood." He went to the supply cabinet and began tending the latest wounds she had inflicted. "I'd rather she be venting her frustrations on this old man than hiding in misery and terror. I don't know what she'll decide, but she won't make any good decisions if she's depressed."

"What happened?"

Genzai and Yahiko looked to Sanosuke, who shook his head. "Not my place to tell. Yahiko, mind if I stay with you for a few days?"

"Something Hikosama said?"

Sanosuke shrugged.

"You used to be a lot more fun before you left," Yahiko complained with a wry grin. "You never worried about other people's privacy so much."

Sano shoved his hands in his pockets. "Yeah, well. It didn't matter so much then."

"Yeah, you can stay with me. Do you still talk in your sleep?"

"I never talked in my sleep!" Sano plunked a fist on the top of Yahiko's head. The kid ducked out from underneath, grinning, as they walked for the door.

Megumi returned at that moment.

"You gonna be okay?"

She eyed him haughtily. "Have I ever not been okay?" The tiny smile that played around her lips reflected the echoes of pain, but it was a smile nonetheless.

~Heh. So that's how she's gonna play it. Good.~ Sano's own jaw relaxed into a small smile of his own as he followed Yahiko back to his own old apartment.

[AN] AUGH! NO! BAD characters! Who said you could keep getting all serious and stuff! This was supposed to be fluffy! FLUFFY! Do I have to force you all? Sorry about this, dear reader. If you'll excuse me, I have to have a little chat with our friends here and remind them that this was supposed to be fluffy... [/AN]


	10. Chapter 10

_Part IX – I Can't Watch This_

Kaoru hadn't been able to think of anything to say to the man who her husband viewed as a father figure after he had told her that there had been a kiss shared between himself and her own closest female friend. It wasn't exactly the sort of thing she could tell her husband, either. ~Somehow, I don't think telling Kenshin, 'Oh, it was nothing really, Hikosan just said that he and Megumisan kissed,' would go over very well. He has a difficult enough relationship with that man as it is.~

And then the realization dawned on her. Kenshin had never said as much, but she had always known that the way the two men interacted indicated very much a familial sort of relationship. She stopped walking in the middle of the yard, not noticing the chill rain that was beginning to fall. The implications laid themselves out for her. ~Megumisan would, in effect, be my mother in law!~

Kamiya Kaoru had faced serial killers with aplomb. She had traveled to Kyoto alone but for the company of a ten year old, following the man she loved who was on a mission that could very well kill him - or worse. She had been abducted, threatened, humiliated, injured, and otherwise incapacitated, and hardly ever so much as flinched. Himura Kaoru had led a relatively quiet but fulfilling life as a wife, master of a dojo, and now a mother.

The thought of Takani Megumi filling the role of her mother in law, even if the relationship was not acknowledged as such...

She changed her direction and veered towards the front gate.

"Kaorudono?" Kenshin saw her hurrying toward the gate. "Is something wrong?"

"What? No. No, I just need to speak to Megumisan. I'll be back soon."

He noted her expression, and decided that he didn't really want to know why. Sometimes ignorance really was bliss. He debated trying to speak to Hiko again but decided against that too. When his shishou got into one of those moods, it was usually much safer to let him work out what was bothering him on his own. "Take an umbrella," he reminded Kaoru as she hurried out.

Either she hadn't heard him or whatever was on her mind was that urgent. He reminded himself that Hiko Seijuurou was not only a grown man fully capable of deciding to leave Megumidono alone without the help of his former student.

Kaoru wasn't so sure. She didn't know the details of what happened but she couldn't let go of the notion that Megumi should not marry that man. The kiss only made things worse, as far as she was concerned. Megumi was a grown woman, certainly, but kissing? That was Just Not Done - especially if Hiko was such a traditional man! What did she think she was doing, kissing him!

Yahiko and Sano were just leaving the clinic as she arrived. They took one look at her and stopped. "Oiy, Jouchan, what's wrong?"

"I need to speak to Megumisan. Do you know what she did?"

"What she did?" Sano's eyes slid sideways to Yahiko, and he shook his head slightly. "I don't think what she did is the issue. But I wouldn't mention it to her right now." He filled her and Yahiko in on the aftermath of his conversation with the young doctor, leaving out the part where she had actually tried to reenact the kiss with him. That alone troubled him; it had been so out of character for her. "She ain't actin' like herself, either. The last time I saw her this freaked out was when we first met her."

"I didn't realize it was that bad," Yahiko said somberly.

"It's worse," Kaoru said. "You guys know how Kenshin thinks of Hikosan as a father figure, right?"

Sanosuke nodded, but Yahiko's eyes widened.

"I can tell you this much," Kaoru said bluntly. "There is no way I would accept Megumisan as my mother in law."

Yahiko lost it completely; Sanosuke simply snickered.

"You thought of that already, didn't you," Kaoru asked him.

He nodded. "Yeah. I didn't want to say anything, and I don't think the Kitsune figured it out either. Not entirely sure I want to be the one to tell her."

"Well, someone should."

"I wanna be there when it happens," Yahiko snorted out. "Oh, man, that is gonna be a sight to see!"

"And very probably painful for the person who tells her," Sano pointed out. "Not to mention any witnesses."

"There is that," the younger man conceded. The three stood in the rain and stared at the ground between them for a long moment, each pondering the next step.

Kenshin had been doing something very similar, debating whether it was better to find out what had happened from his wife or to drag it out from the source. The rain was falling steadily and Kenji was sleeping deeply when his father arose from his thoughts and ventured into the lion's den. ~Then again, I think I might rather face a few lions than Shishou in that mood...~

"Curiosity finally got the better of you?" Hiko had opened the shoji screen to watch the rain. The thin paper walls would not have hidden Kenshin's approach from his master even had they been closed, but Hiko did not look at the younger man.

"You haven't been seen in such a mood in a long time," Kenshin pointed out. "Kaorudono said nothing of what happened, but she has gone to speak to Megumidono."

Hiko grunted acknowledgment. He was looking at the rain without seeing it.

"Shishou... This has been a very eventful day. Perhaps you should get some rest."

This time, the big man snorted. "I'm not so old that I need to be sent to bed. Even if I were, you are hardly the man to command me."

Kenshin rose to the bait. The man was impossible! "It seems as though a woman's commands are better heeded anyway."

"You're hardly one to talk, boy. I've never seen a man more whipped than you."

"To each his own," Kenshin replied, more calmly. "This one enjoys the quiet life. It's what was fought for, for so many years."

"THIS is what you fought for? You're stupider than I thought."

"There is happiness in this home, Shishou. Could you say the same?"

Another snort answered his query. The rain drummed steadily on the roof. "You have a point. That is why I came. It wasn't about a bride. It isn't even about a woman. Or it wasn't."

"Wasn't?"

"The woman. The doctor. Takani Megumi. That is no woman. That is a demon. She must be a Kitsune, weaving her spells. I could see that birdbrain friend of yours being swept away by her magic, but she shouldn't have an effect on me." He seemed almost angry. Hiko's words went into Kenshin's ears but his brain refused to process them. His master could not possibly have fallen so hard so quickly.

"Did she ever compel anyone else to kiss her?

"Oro!" ~Wait. What? Compel? Kissing her? KISSING her?~ "Shishou... you... You didn't..."

"Is that a yes or a no?"

Kenshin found himself praying for an interruption. ~This should be when Sano bursts in here and defends her honor or something. Please, please let it happen,~ he prayed. But either the powers that be weren't listening, or they were enjoying watching him squirm. "As far as this one knows, Megumidono has never made anyone kiss her."

"You're wrong."

Sudden understanding flooded through Kenshin, and with it, anger. "No. YOU are wrong. With everything Megumidono has endured, she is the last person who would ever make anyone do any such thing. And while this one does not believe that you would force such a thing on her, there is no way that the opposite would be believed."

Answering anger danced briefly in the older man's eyes, but was rapidly replaced with bitter amusement. "Idiot. I said she compelled me, not forced me. She's a captivating woman. I could resent her for that. But the greater challenge would be to win her."

"She hates you." Kenshin knew it was not true, but if he had kissed her, she probably wasn't too thrilled with him at the moment.

"Oh, I'm reasonably sure she doesn't," Hiko smirked. "As a matter of fact," he continued as he saw the slight signs that only six other people in all Japan might have recognized as Kenshin becoming distraught, "I don't doubt she's upset but she is definitely not immune to my manly charms."

~I think I'm going to be sick,~ Kenshin thought to himself as Hiko continued. Whether that was in response to Hiko's manner, or the thought of him with Megumi, he would have been hard pressed to say at that moment.

"No, Kitsune or sorceress she may be, but she wants me." No longer sunk in self-pity, Kenshin's teacher seemed to be strutting even while sitting.

"Please say we are not having this conversation," Kenshin muttered. "Shishou, details are not wanted. REALLY not wanted. But Megumidono is not going to be a traditional wife for you. If that's what you want, you really ought to look elsewhere."

"This morning I would have agreed with you. Tonight, I have changed my mind. I no longer want a wife."

Kenshin tried not to hope. "Oro?"

"I want her. Any way she'll have me."

Kenshin fought the urge to beat his head against the wall, or maybe suck his thumb. It was a familiar feeling, when his shishou was involved.

Oddly enough, his wife was feeling very much the same at that moment. "I can't just let it go. If nothing else, it's not fair to Kenshin," she said finally.

"You're going to tell her now, aren't you."

"Tell who what?" All three of them turned to see the old doctor looking out into the rain at them. The three exchanged glances.

"He'll hear about it soon enough," Sanosuke pointed out.

Yahiko grinned. "You know how Kenshin sees Hikosama as a father figure, right?"

The old doctor nodded, at first looking bewildered, but as the implications sank in he began his shake his head. "Oh no. Megumikun is barely holding together right now. Go home or come in out of the rain, but I don't think you want to dump that on her after the day she's had."

"Some day," Yahiko muttered. "It's odd to think he only showed up this morning."

"You're telling me," Sanosuke grumbled. "Damn the man. Things were so much easier without him."

"Why don't you guys head on home. I just want to make sure Megumisan is okay," Kaoru said.

"That's why I came," Sanosuke reminded her. "And she's better than she was when I got here, though I'm not sure how much that's actually sayin'."

"Megumikun was practically catatonic when you got here," Genzai pointed out. "I don't know how you did it, but I don't think I thanked you for it. So, thank you."

Sanosuke shrugged again. "Hey, you know me," he grinned. "Always lookin' out for everyone else."

The four friends laughed, although what he said was true.

"I'm sorry, Genzaisensei, but I think it's something she should know. As much as she cares for Kenshin, I know she won't want to upset him," Kaoru said as she walked into the clinic.

The three men gaped after her, and Sanosuke and Yahiko followed her back inside. "There's no way I'm missing this," Yahiko murmured to his tall friend.

"Better you than me. I think I'd rather stay out of harm's way," Sano said. "That's one fight even I wouldn't buy. Not even in the old days."

Yahiko snickered. "Yeah, I'm sure it won't be that bad."

"That's 'cause you don't know what happened. And it ain't my place to say, either."

"Oh, I'll find out," Yahiko said breezily, although he was clearly eaten up by curiosity.

"You probably will, but it won't be my fault."

Kaoru had knocked on Megumi's door and been granted admittance. She closed the door behind her, much to Yahiko's chagrin. The young man, unable to resist, leaned close in the hopes he could overhear the conversation.

"Are you okay? I heard some of what happened."

Megumi looked at her without surprise. "There really are no secrets here, are there… I'm perfectly all right, thank you. Confused," she admitted, "but all right."

"I'm glad." Kaoru's hands were folded in front of her, but to the doctor who knew her well, the young mother's agitation was clear.

"What is it, Kaoruchan?"

"It's… I'm concerned about Kenshin."

"What's wrong?" Instantly she was on the alert, competence and concern radiating from her.

"No, no, it's nothing like that," Kaoru hastened to reassure her. "Physically he's fine. It's… Megumisan, you have to understand. Kenshin sees Hikosan as… Well, he's like Kenshin's father." She bit her lip, watching Megumi.

"Yes, I know that."

"Megumisan… If you marry Hikosan… You'd be like Kenshin's stepmother." The expression on Kaoru's face as she said it defied definition. Desperation was foremost, but embarrassment, hesitation, and disbelief were also among the clearer emotions in her eyes.

Megumi closed her eyes. "I hadn't thought of that," she admitted. "That would make things awkward, wouldn't it."

Relief flooded through Kaoru. "Yes, just a little," she said with a small smile.

"Well, that's just one more mark in his favor then, isn't it?" The wicked gleam in Megumi's eyes as she opened them chased every bit of relief from Kaoru's mind.

"Oh, you vixen, you would, wouldn't you," she said resignedly. For answer, Megumi laughed. It seemed that the wicked Kitsune was back.

"That can't be good," Yahiko said to Sanosuke as the laugh penetrated the door.

"No, it can't," Sanosuke agreed.

"In fact," Megumi all but purred, I think I should go talk to him about that myself."

"Him? Hikosan? He'd probably find it amusing," Kaoru grumbled.

"Actually, I meant Kensan," Megumi smirked.

"Oro?" Kaoru blurted in surprise.

Megumi leveled a look at her friend. "You've been married to him too long." Rolling her eyes, she couldn't help but to laugh at her friend's discomfiture, though she sobered quickly. "I'm serious. Kensan knows Hikosan best. As awkward as it might be, I know I can trust him to be honest with me."

"That is true," his wife conceded. "Kenshin is sometimes painfully honest."

"Mostly, the pain falls on him," Megumi agreed, not entirely humorously. "For example, when discussing your cooking."

"What about my cooking," Kaoru glowered.

"Oh, nothing." Megumi grinned. "Shall we interrupt the boys on their eavesdropping, then?" Grinning, she opened the door as she spoke. Sanosuke was sitting at the other end of the room while Yahiko seemed to be attempting to braid his hair. Both wore looks of extreme innocence.

"Megumisan? Are you going to tell him about... What happened?"

The doctor sighed. "I'm sure he already knows. Will you two go home already? No one believes you're actually braiding Sanosuke's hair, Yahiko."

With a wicked grin, the teen whined, "But it's so long and pretty! I just can't HELP myself!" He didn't have enough time to run, snorting with laughter as he was before Sano knocked him out of the park - or at least the clinic.

"Are you going to come over now?" Kaoru asked.

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Megumi hedged. "Seeing that Hikosan is staying there."

Sanosuke looked at her, his expression guarded. "You're leavin' in a week. Right?"

"Yes."

"I don't think it's fair to make the rest of us wait that long."

"What he means," Kaoru rushed to intercept the impending outburst, "is that if one of them needs to make arrangements to relocate to Aizu, he should have as much time to prepare as possible."

"Nice save," Sano smirked. "Yeah, that's what I meant." But the smirk didn't reach his eyes, though he kept them lowered.

"You should try to get some rest, Sano. Go find Yahiko and we'll see you in the morning," Kaoru said.

"Nuh uh. I'm not lettin' you two walk home alone," he countered.

Kaoru shook her head. "Then let's go. It's getting late."

Megumi went to find Genzai to let him know she was leaving. It wasn't hard; he had been in his office with the door open.

"Just don't stay out too late, Megumikun. I'd like to lock up soon. It's late and I'm old." The smile he gave her was warm and fatherly, and she thanked him with a smile of her own before they left.


	11. Chapter 11

_Part X – Why Does This Always Happen To Me?_

It was after nine when the three friends left the clinic and returned to the dojo. Kenshin met them at the door, quickly bringing extra towels for their friends.

"Weren't you going to stay with Yahiko?" he asked Sanosuke.

The taller man nodded. "I was, but I didn't want them walkin' here alone. And the Fox is gonna need someone to walk her back to the clinic," he said, drying himself off and plunking himself down on the engawa.

"You don't have to sit out here," Kenshin pointed out.

"I ain't going inside right now," came the retort.

Shrugging, Kenshin shook his head. "Welcome home, Kaorudono."

"Thank you. Megumisan needs to talk to you. Why don't you two use the dojo?" Kaoru smiled at her husband, her eyes telling him that yes, it was about what he didn't want to discuss. His own eyes told her that he knew, and he did not like it. Nonetheless, he nodded and led the doctor, whose own eyes were troubled, to the empty training hall..

"Some day, isn't it, Megumidono?" Kenshin tried to keep his tone light, pulling out the old mask of a smile he'd once worn far too frequently.

"It isn't going to work, Kensan. All day, all anyone has done is distract me. But Sano was right."

"Oro?" That was unexpected. "Did you just say Sano was right about something?"

Megumi shot him a glance, clearly unimpressed with his attempt at humor. "I'm going back to Aizu in a week. If I'm not going alone, whoever comes with me is going to need to prepare." Kenshin nodded, conceding the point. "Which is why I need to know all I can about Hikosan."

"Megumidono..."

"You know what happened at the clinic."

"Ahh. Hai. Unfortunately, Shishou mentioned something, although the details were not made clear," Kenshin said, the mask gone and his disgust evident.

"Yes, Kensan, we all know that you think of him as a father and that it bothers you terribly that he'd kiss me, or that I'd consider marrying a man old enough to have sired either of us. Or that if I did marry him, I'd be like your stepmother."

"Put the ears away," Kenshin grumbled. Megumi laughed.

"Kensan," she said one she'd calmed a little. "I owe you an apology for my little joke this afternoon. Hikosan wanted to get a rise out of you. I couldn't let him. It was too easy."

"So no more 'Seikun' then?"

Megumi sighed. "You tell me. Kensan, I know you don't like it, but I also know I can trust you. They're both pressing me for a decision. This has been a terrible day." She sank down to sit on the raised platform on the side of the dojo.

Kenshin nodded and sat next to her. "This one can find no argument to that." He thought for a moment. "As you know, Shishou can be a very difficult man to get along with sometimes. He's not very good at dealing with people on the surface."

"He did a good job of raising you," she pointed out.

Kenshin shrugged. "That could be debated," he said dryly. "Although it's true that many of this one's ideas and ideals were instilled by him, remember that we haven't seen much of each other in the last fifteen years. Although he seems to be very much the same person... It's still a mystery as to why he suddenly decided he wanted a wife."

"I can't deny that he's an attractive man. And he doesn't look his age - or act it."

"Except that he's a complete curmudgeon."

"But that has nothing to do with his age, Kensan. From what you've said, he's always been that way."

"True," Kenshin smiled. "But Megumidono, you have to be the one to decide what you're going to do. Whether you decide to become involved with someone or not, no matter who it is, it's your life."

"There's something you're not saying."

"Megumidono... Were it up to this one, the recommendation would be please, PLEASE don't choose Shishou."

"But that," she smirked, "is because of your relationship with him. Even if neither of you would ever admit it aloud."

Kenshin crossed his eyes at her.

"Admit it to yourself, Kensan, if not the rest of us. Although I'd imagine you already have. You're an honest man, Kensan." Suddenly Megumi's smile twisted. "Except about your own worth. Which... is something that applies to most anyone alive."

"Including Shishou."

"Hmm?"

"Shishou has never had any delusions about his inferiority."

"I wouldn't be so sure."

"Oro?"

"Kensan... I don't think there's any one of us who actually believes, deep down, that we're as good as all that. Look at any one of us. Even me," she said barely in a whisper.

"Megumidono, you've more than proven yourself above your past."

She shook her head. "It's not just my past."

"You don't think you deserve love, is that it?" He blinked at her guilelessly.

"I know I'm safe, with you. I always knew. I loved you, but I also knew that it was never mutual. It hurt, but not as much as it would had I won your love and then… lost you."

Kenshin made a small sound of understanding. "And now you have two men demanding you choose between them for a lover."

Megumi winced. "I wish you wouldn't put it that way."

"You think discussing my best friend and my shishou with you, like this, is easy?" Indeed, he let her see his face; his expression clearly showed how bothered he was. "Megumidono, we may be adults, but being around Shishou tends to make this one feel like a child again. And while Sanosuke is this one's most trusted friend, he does tend to react without thinking when it's a matter close to his heart. He truly loves you."

"So you think I should choose him."

Kenshin shook his head. "No. You should listen to your heart. You always try to be logical about your approach to things. Perhaps not analyzing everything and just going with what your heart tells you would be a nice change."

"My heart says I should run."

"So run."

"What?"

Kenshin shrugged. "Normally, that isn't the recommended course. But be warned, if you do run, there is no doubt that Sano at least would follow. He might simply watch over you from a distance, but he would follow."

Megumi nodded. "He wouldn't kiss me."

"Oro?" Kenshin raised an eyebrow, not entirely sure if he wanted to hear this.

"The Tori-atama was the first one to speak to me after... what happened." Megumi ran a hand through her hair, pushing her bangs away from her face. "I wasn't exactly thinking clearly, and I set up the same circumstance with him... But he did not take the same liberties." She blushed.

Kenshin was not surprised. "He's a hothead, but he's an honorable hothead."

"Thanks. I think." A smug grin twisted Sano's face as he appeared in the doorway but did not quite reach his eyes.

"Sano, weren't you going to sit and _wait_ for Megumidono?"

The tall young man shrugged and leaned against the doorframe. "I got bored."

"Nosy, you mean," Megumi scoffed.

Shrugging, he didn't choose to deny it.

"Sano, do you have a moment?"

"What's up, Kenshin?"

"Excuse us a moment, Megumidono." She nodded and Kenshin stepped past Sanosuke onto the covered porch. "Sano, Megumidono explained what happened after what happened, happened."

"Wow. That was one hell of a convoluted statement, Kenshin. Wanna try that in plain Japanese?"

Disgruntled, Kenshin sighed. "Shishou mentioned that there was a kiss, although this one is still not entirely sure what happened with that – and the details are not desired. But Megumidono spoke of how she set up a situation to allow you the same opportunity, and you didn't take it."

The shaggy head dropped to the side, and Kenshin studied his friend in the darkness. The rain helped to muffle his muttered response. 

"She wasn't actin' right," he started, but the rest of it came out in an incomprehensible growl.

"What was that?"

"She wasn't actin' right. I got… scared." Long dark hair obscured his face. "I thought she was gonna do somethin' really stupid."

"Megumidono's a little overwhelmed right now, Sano. She also mentioned that you and Shishou have been pressing for her to choose."

"I don't care if she chooses me right off, just like that. It's all happening so fast; I just want her to choose not him." He slouched, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"It has to be her choice, Sano. No matter what anyone else wants, this is a decision Megumidono has to reach herself."

"Thank you, Kensan." Megumi emerged from the dojo and smiled gratefully at him. "You've given me much to think about." She nodded to both of them and went back to the living quarters to say goodbye to Kaoru, who had just come to the doorway with a squirming Kenji in her arms. The men watched as Megumi took the child and held him over her head. Their laughter drifted through the rain.

"She's going to run." Sanosuke and Kenshin both jumped as Hiko appeared next to them; neither one of them had sensed his arrival. "This is all your fault," he said calmly, looking down his nose at his former student.

"Shishou… that isn't fair," Kenshin grumbled. "You don't know that she will, and even if she does, you don't know that she wouldn't have run without this one's advice."

"Be that as it may," Hiko said in a low voice. "I'll be damned if I let a mere woman defeat me like that."

"A mere woman?" It was Sanosuke's incredulous tone that alerted Kenshin. "There's no such thing – and if there were, she is no 'mere' anything!" He glared at Hiko, who turned his supercilious gaze on the younger man.

"Is it a fight you want, then?" Now he and Sano were glaring at each other. Kenshin could swear he saw daggers in the air, and there was the faint smell of ozone as well.

"Maa, maa, you don't know that she's going to run away," he tried.

Both glares were turned on him.

"Kenshin, you idiot, she's going to play the fox and expect us to hunt her down. She is going to lead us on a wild chase until one or the other tires of it."

"Hm. So you aren't quite as stupid as you look," Hiko said to Sanosuke. "You can't tell me you honestly expect her to decide anything else." Suddenly the recluse made his way across the yard. He said something to Megumi, who was handing a drowsy Kenji back to his mother and stepping into her shoes.

"See you tomorrow, Megumisan!" Kaoru's voice carried across the yard as Megumi stepped outside. Hiko began to follow.

Sano started after them, pausing only to don his own shoes. "Oiy! I promised Genzaisensei I'd see you home, Kitsune." Kenshin smiled and shook his head, bemused, as he went to tell his wife how singularly unproductive a set of conversations he'd just had.

"She's not going to run, Kenshin," was all Kaoru said.

"Oro?"

"She's already got them on the hunt, but that's not what she really wants." Kaoru smiled and said no more. Kenshin sighed and followed her inside.

Indeed, from where they'd stood, it seemed that Hiko and Sano were jockeying for position around the beautiful woman in more ways than one. Megumi put up with it for all of three minutes. Then she stopped suddenly, startling both men.

"Takanisensei? What is it?" Hiko was on the alert, scanning for danger. Sanosuke watched her for signs of illness or injury.

"You two are ridiculous. I'd be doing the right thing to run away," she said, flipping back her hair with a disdainful expression. "But if you both stop acting like dogs sniffing at each other, I'll give you until we reach the clinic to come up with one question that you'd like to know the answer to in ten years."

"Huh?" Sano said intelligently.

Hiko sighed. "Though I wouldn't phrase it quite so ineloquently, I have to agree with the birdbrain here. Please, explain."

Megumi resumed walking. "I want each of you to come up with one question to which, were we married ten years from now, you would want to know the answer. For example, I might ask if you regretted marrying me." She shrugged. "You both know my patients come first."

Both men grunted, and Megumi was permitted to enjoy the rest of the short walk to the clinic in silence.

It wasn't long before Sano had a smug smirk which Hiko found extremely irritating.

~A question I'd want to ask in ten years? What sort of a test is this?~ Hiko Seijuurou was not a man to be taken lightly. He was not a frivolous sort, nor given to jokes - unless of course they were at his student's expense. Kenshin was always good for a laugh as far as Hiko was concerned. He had woken up that morning and entered Tokyo with the undefined desire for a wife to care for him as his age began to catch up with him. Then he had seen Megumi and she had seemed to be ideally suited for his plan. An independent, self-sufficient woman who happened to be nubile and beautiful. Her bloodlines would doubtless compliment his and she could bear him many strong sons.

Was it really only just that morning?

If anything, he found himself becoming annoyed with her. Who did she think she was to intrigue him so? Only a woman! A hot-tempered, condescending vixen of a woman! Who had responded to his kiss quiet ardently at first… Kissing had never failed him before, and while he hadn't precisely intended it at the moment it had happened, he saw nothing regrettable about it – except that she had fled, and not continued the pleasant interlude to what he thought ought to be the inevitable conclusion. Lying in his arms afterward, she would realize that there could be no other man for her but himself, and that even her medical career was not as relevant to her life as he was.

Because after all, he was Hiko Seijuurou XIII. The last of his "line" as it were, and if Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu were to continue, clearly he needed another student. Although if the truth were to be told, he didn't exactly anticipate passing on the ougi again… The succession technique of the school had always involved the death of the master. With two exceptions, one of which was Kenshin.

That thought reminded him of his former student's warning about Megumi's aversion to the martial arts. Should he ask that? No. That was the sort of thing to mention before the wedding. His brow furrowed. What kind of question was she expecting? He supposed it ought to be something deep and emotionally based. Something sensitive and catering without being subservient. He was not a subservient sort any more than he was frivolous.

He remained on the alert, though not too many people seemed to want to be out in the heavy rain on such a chilly night. Including himself. But if he was going to impress this woman, he saw very little choice in the matter... What kind of question would she want to hear?

Megumi felt Hiko's eyes on her as they walked. Sano seemed to be paying more attention to their surroundings, and as the clinic came into view he slowed his pace just a hair, seeing his rival's brow still furrowed with thought.

~Since when did he get to be so noble?~ Megumi chased the errant thought from her mind and turned to face her escorts. "Thank you for seeing me back," she nodded to them. "Have you two come up with your questions yet?"

Sanosuke grinned cockily. "Yeah, I got mine."

"And Hikosan?"

He nodded curtly. "I'd want to know if I'd been a good husband to you, and if not, how I could do better."

Megumi nodded thoughtfully. "I see," she said finally. "And yours?" she asked Sanosuke.

The smirk spread. "I'd wanna know what was for dinner."

She stared at him, openmouthed, and Hiko looked utterly disgusted. He brought his hand to his face, allowing it to fall into his open palm with a loud smack.

Megumi's reaction was entirely unexpected: she laughed. It wasn't her usual ladylike titter, or the wicked Kitsune laugh. Neither did she throw her head back and guffaw, as Sanosuke himself might. She pressed one hand to her mouth and girlish giggles slipped out only occasionally, but her eyes were squeezed shut and her shoulders shook violently.

Hiko lifted his head and watched her, incredulous. ~What the hell just happened? Did that upstart little hatchling just outmaneuver me?~ Sanosuke was all but strutting.

"Oh, oh, oh, you two are both too much!" Megumi choked out. Tears slipped from her eyes as she struggled to gain control over herself.

"So glad to amuse you," Hiko muttered.

Once again, Sanosuke merely shrugged. "All in a day's work."

"Have you ever worked a day in your life?" Megumi teased.

"Oiy! You know I have!"

"But never more than two," Hiko gibed.

"You're one to talk," Sano retorted, glaring at the older man.

"I make an honest living." Hiko was unruffled.

"I'm impressed you do anything honestly!"

"I'm impressed you do anything," Hiko said calmly.

"I'll show you anything," Sanosuke growled just before he moved.

Hiko didn't, as far as Megumi could see, but Sano's fist landed in Hiko's hand. The older man's eyes widened slightly as he felt the strength behind the swing. It was certainly nothing he couldn't handle but it was impressive.

"Stop it, right now!" Megumi's voice cut shrilly through their narrowed focuses. They froze, Sano's fist clenched in Hiko's hand, their postures aggressive and their expressions oddly sheepish. "If either one of you honestly for so much as an instant believed that I was going to be impressed by such behavior..." She trailed off, livid, and stormed inside the clinic, leaving both men standing in the rain.

They exchanged a glance. "We could continue this elsewhere," Sano offered.

"Do you really think you'd stand a chance against me? After my scrawny little student could take you so easily?"

Sanosuke glared. "I'm stronger now than I was then. And you, old man, aren't what you used to be either. Just because the others haven't figured it out..."

Hiko released Sano's fist, almost tossing it away disdainfully. "Figured what out?"

Sano tossed his hair back with a superior smirk. "You want a woman to prove you still have what it takes. You're afraid of gettin' old."

The rain fell harder. Hiko Seijuurou eyed Sagara Sanosuke with something deeper than disdain before turning wordlessly into the night. Sanosuke watched him go, wondering why he did not feel as though he had won.


	12. Chapter 12

_Part XI – You Make Me_

Hiko returned to the dojo in a darker mood than he'd been in the last time he'd left the clinic. ~What a day this has been,~ he mused. ~I should have left this morning. No, I never should have come.~ It was not self-doubt, he reassured himself. Hiko Seijuurou hadn't doubted himself since he was about five years old. It wasn't bad judgment either, because he did not have bad judgment. ~But where the hell did that damn KID get such a stupid idea?~

He stopped abruptly, lowering his umbrella. The rain cascaded down, harder even than before, and Hiko raised his closed eyes to the heavens. Allowing the rain to run down his face, his hair, he reveled in the chill wetness. ~Damn. I can't let him get to me. I shouldn't have let her get to me. Somewhere there's got to be a nice, quiet, traditionally raised woman who will cook and clean and warm my bed at night without all this foolishness.~ But it was no use. ~Stop lying to yourself. The damn kid is right. Or he was. When I got here this morning, that was what I wanted. Until I saw her. What a day this has been, indeed.~

Without thinking about it, he began a kata exercise, the stylized movements first learned back in his own early training days when he had first studied swordfighting helping him to clear his mind. He was several minutes into it when he heard a throat clearing a respectful distance behind him.

"Is everything all right, sir?"

Hiko cracked an eye, never pausing. The young officer managed to look both respectful and embarrassed.

"Everything is fine."

"Certainly. It's just not usual to see someone in the middle of doing kata in the middle of the street in the middle of the night in the middle of the rain."

"That's a lot of middles, isn't it."

"Uh, yes, sir. Sorry to have bothered you, sir." The young man hurried off into the night, his splashing footsteps fading into the distance.

Hiko sighed, coming to the end of the exercise. He did feel calmer, but the anger was still there, buried with many other feelings beneath the surface. Feelings that such as he would not admit to himself, were it not inevitable. Feelings like those he had developed in a matter of hours for Megumi, and those he had fostered silently for decades such as his paternal regard for Kenshin.

Who would not be happy to hear about this. So, Hiko decided not to say anything. Bad enough he had come to Tokyo seeking advice from the little idiot he'd raised. Doubtless that one would derive far too much enjoyment from seeing Hiko so discomfited. That was one thing about their relationship he'd rather leave alone. He always got the best of his baka deshi. That was all there was to it.

He refused to think about it anymore, and resumed walking, not bothering to reopen the umbrella. ~What was for dinner? Is that really the best question that idiot could think up?~

Although it really was a rather sensible question, if he was going to think about it, which he was not, because if one really waited ten years to ask if he was a good husband...

Then the dojo loomed in front of him, and he banished all thoughts of the evening's events as he stepped inside.

Of course Kenshin was waiting for him.

"You're wet," he observed.

Hiko looked down his nose at the little redhead. "For that, I trained you for so many years?"

Kenshin sighed and tossed the towel he had ready to his former master. "Kaorudono has already gone to bed. She was concerned when you didn't come back right away."

Hiko shrugged. "I decided to enjoy the rain."

"Shishou, you've never enjoyed the rain."

"I enjoy everything nature has to offer."

"You've said it's necessary, but you've never been known to walk in it deliberately," Kenshin pointed out. "You certainly took the umbrella with you very willingly."

Hiko snorted. "And does Takanisensei like to walk in the rain?"

"Well, no," Kenshin had to admit.

"There you go. And to think after all this time, you're still the same baka," he said, tossing the wet towel back at Kenshin and making his way towards the room in which he was staying.

Kenshin shook his head. "Shishou, we both know that such is not the case."

"Hmh." Hiko did not pause.

"Shishou..."

"I'm tired, Kenshin. It's been a long day."

"So it has, Shishou."

"Good night, Kenshin."

"What happened out there?"

"What makes you think something happened?" Now he stopped, looking over his shoulder.

"You're easier to read than you used to be."

In an instant, Hiko was towering over Kenshin, glaring down at him. "So are you. And more insolent, besides."

"So something did happen." Kenshin did not look gratified by the insight.

~Damn it all.~ "That insolent little whelp of a friend of yours crossed a line. You might tell him to stay away."

Kenshin watched his trusted teacher storm down the hall to the room in which he was staying. Suddenly he found himself wishing fervently that a certain American invention of which he had heard recently was more accessible. Apparently, this device called a "telephone" would allow people to converse across distances, much like a telegraph in principle. The main difference was that it would allow people to talk to each other as though they were face to face, even if they were miles apart. He wished he could use such a thing to talk to Sanosuke at that moment, to find out what had happened. Sighing, he folded the towel and turned back towards his own room.

He stopped, hearing a sound outside that was not the rain.

Listening a moment, he heard it again. It sounded like a cicada.

Stepping outside, he saw Sanosuke at the gate.

"Sano? What are you doing here? Weren't you going to stay with Yahiko?"

"Oiy, Kenshin. I'm going there after, but..."

"But?" Kenshin peered through the rain. Did Sanosuke look embarrassed? Picking up the umbrella Hiko had left, he stepped into his shoes and made his way through the rain to speak to his friend.

"I... may have said something that didn't go over very well." Sanosuke was definitely embarrassed.

"Really, Sano? You?"

"Kenshin. I'm being serious. It started out okay. Megumi gave us a challenge."

"A challenge?" This was bound to be interesting.

"Yeah. She wanted each of us to come up with a question we'd ask her if we were married to her in ten years."

Kenshin made a small noise of interest. Actually, that was a very smart sort of question. "And what happened?"

"He wanted to know if he'd been a good husband, and if not what he could do to make it better."

"And you?"

"I asked what was for dinner."

Kenshin, in an unknowing echo of Hiko's response, dropped his face into his open palm. "You didn't."

But Sanosuke was smirking. "That was what Hiko said. But, Kenshin, have you ever seen Megumi laugh? Really laugh?"

He looked up in surprise. Sano's mouth wore a smirk, indeed, but his eyes... There was a wistfulness that Kenshin rarely saw there. It was an expression he associated most closely with Megumi herself, when she'd first come to the dojo and seen her new friends acting like family with one another. ~This is not going to end well...~

"But then she said somethin' about, you know, how I haven't exactly done a lot of work. Next thing I know, I was takin' a swing at Hiko. She yelled at us to stop, then she went inside. She was pretty mad. But then..." Sano dropped his head and muttered something.

He told Kenshin exactly what he'd said to Hiko, and what the man's reaction had been. How he'd stopped and done kata in the rain. How much of a pain in the ass it had been to follow the man without being detected... he hoped.

"But he probably knew I was there anyway."

Kenshin nodded. "Shishou is even more perceptive than this one. Sano, it was his suggestion that you stay away from him. It isn't clear how, under the circumstances. Megumidono isn't going to be happy with just one test, and while it sounds as though you may have passed that one. Actually, that was a very good answer. Impressive," the redhead added with a smile. "But Shishou is not himself. There are memories from this one's youth... He used to entertain women from time to time. Yes, entertain, in the sense you think." Now the smile quirked oddly. "But he never seemed to be very attached to any one in particular before."

"You think he's serious about the Kitsune?"

"As serious as you are, Sano."

"Damn it all to hell."

Kenshin raised an eyebrow.

"D'you think she'd get bored with him after a while?"

"Sano, you can't possibly mean after all this time, after everything we've all been through, you of all people are just going to walk away." He sounded incredulous, and as the men studied each other, it occurred to Kenshin just how much his friend really had changed. His answer to Megumi's question was not the flippant response of the hotheaded young punk; it was the natural response of a man who could not imagine his life as anything other than normal, complete, and right with the woman he loved.

"Heh. Not gonna make it that easy on the old man, but if I have to, I will. She ain't ready for me. She ain't ready for him, either, but it's only fair. He'll never know what hit him by the time she's done with him. Besides, Hiten Mitsurugi or not, he's still an old geezer next to me." Suddenly the youthful smirk was back, the casual, cocksure cavalier attitude had never vanished from Sanosuke's face. "When he croaks, she'll be ready for a real man."

Kenshin couldn't help but to laugh softly. "Oh, Sano. You'd better get to Yahiko's apartment before he locks you out," he chuckled.

"Laughin' looks good on you. We gotta get you to do it more often. Goodnight, Kenshin." With a swirl of white cloak and dark hair, he ran off into the rain. The redhead blinked; through the dim light, from behind and in the distance, one might be hard pressed to tell the difference between Hiko and Sano.

Kaoru sat up as he entered their room. Quickly, he brought her up to speed on his encounters with both his teacher and his friend. She was no less taken aback than he had been at Sano's parting admission. "I don't believe he'd really back down. That doesn't sound like him. Not even the new, improved Sano."

Kenshin nodded. "The problem is, none of those three is exactly the type to back down."

"They're raging egos waiting for a place to happen, you mean."

"Ahh, this one did not say that…"

"But you meant it. Anata, it's all right." The smile Kaoru bestowed on her embarrassed husband was sweet and amused. "It's just us here. You can speak honestly. It's the truth. Megumisan uses it more as a shield, but they all come across as arrogant sometimes."

"All of the time, in one case."

"Which one?" Kaoru asked with feigned innocence.

"Maybe we should rest. If today was this full of excitement, tomorrow is bound to be more so."

"You and your flow of time," Kaoru chided, still smiling. "If it weren't so cold and wet, I'd go check on Megumisan myself."

"Hasn't there been enough checking on people tonight?" Now the former rurouni's tone was pleading.

Kaoru took pity on him. "You're right, Kenshin. Come to bed and we'll see what tomorrow brings."

But Kenshin was not the only one to whom sleep would not readily come. For all his brave words, Sanosuke lay staring at the ceiling of Yahiko's apartment for many hours that night. Hiko's eyes remained open as well, memorizing every detail visible to him in the darkened room of the dojo complex.

And Megumi, who had been fuming when she retreated to her own room, slowly gathered her frazzled nerves and wrote a long letter to her father.

In five years, she had not yet found any trace of her mother or brothers while living in Aizu, but she had not given up hope. In times of great need, an old friend had suggested writing a letter to her father and burning it, since she didn't seem inclined towards prayer. It smelled a little much of ancestor worship to her, but she found it a comfort – which, she supposed, was the point of religion after all. She had intended only to outline the current "ridiculous situation" but found herself pouring out five years of accumulated confusion and pain. The frustration of not knowing any more about the rest of her family, the pain of unrequited love, the foolishness of those who wouldn't listen to their doctor… And the details of the kiss, the question… What would be the third test? The first had not been planned but had brought her to a realization. The second had been highly amusing and given her great insight into both men. Based on honor and forthrightness, from those two tests, the obvious choice would be Sanosuke.

But she had never much been one for taking the obvious choice, had she? Takani Megumi came from a long line of those who did not take the easy way out. Flouting convention ran in her veins, after all. ~Besides, whatever affects Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu may have on a man, he's still old. If Sanosuke doesn't wait for me, I'm sure there will be other men.~

The thought brought her up short. That wasn't a very good way to look at the situation, she scolded herself.

A soft knock came at her door. "Megumikun?"

Gathering her robe around herself, she rose to greet her mentor. "Yes, Genzaisensei?"

"I saw the light, and wanted to make sure you were okay."

"I'm fine. It's just this whole silly mess."

"Megumikun, if everyone had silly messes like you do, the world would be a much more fun place."

"For the observers maybe." She summed up the situation, much as she had intended to do originally, telling her mentor about the first, inadvertent test, and the second, more deliberate one.

"It sounds like Sano has the whole thing planned."

"What whole thing?" She eyed him suspiciously.

The old man shook his head. "He's thought about it for a long time. About you. Hikosan hasn't even known you a full cycle of hours. You can hardly expect him to have given this much thought."

"I don't doubt that he has plenty of experience with women," Megumi said dryly.

"With women, very probably," the elder doctor conceded, "but I suspect very little with love."

"Love?" Megumi echoed.

He nodded in response. "Think about it. Hikosan is not a very emotive person. One has only to observe his relationship with Himurakun to see that. It's clear if you know them that they view each other as a father and son might, but to a stranger, they are all arrogant-master-and-obstinate-student. They express their caring more with actions they prefer to go unacknowledged, saving their words for insults and banter."

"Yes, but I'm not Kensan."

"Exactly. You're a woman he's known less than a day, and he's already quite taken with you."

"Not that I don't warrant such devotion," Megumi smirked to an exasperated smile from Genzai, "but isn't that a bit extreme? It has been less than a day."

"Can you tell me you're not the least bit attracted to him, then?"

"I – of course I'm…" Intending to deny it, with Oguni Genzai's gimlet gaze boring into her, she found she could not. The vast difference in their ages did indeed bother her. She replayed their meeting in her mind.

_She had been walking to the dojo to visit, slightly irritated that her mentor had gotten into the onigiri she'd intended to bring. Every last one of them was gone. An unfamiliar voice interrupted her thoughts. "Onnasensei!"_

_She turned to look for the source of the voice and saw him. From the description, she knew he could be no other than Hiko Seijuurou the thirteenth, Kensan's former teacher. Dark hair longer than her own cascaded down his back, blown lightly in the breeze. Broad shoulders were only half-hidden beneath that ridiculously ostentatious white cloak with its red flared collar. His body was quite the opposite of Kenshin's in many ways; where Kensan was lean and wiry, this man… Well, he looked like he could endure the strain of Hiten Mitsurugi Ryuu. She narrowed her eyes, still annoyed. "May I help you?" _

_He approached her, towering over her though she was no waif. Closer still, she could see the arrogance that oozed out of every pore. This was a man who felt entitled to anything he wanted. Used to such things, she could sense his attraction to her... Typical male. "I was given terrible directions to find the Kamiya Dojo. Tell me how to get there." _

_That was a surprise. He was asking directions to the dojo. Still, it was best not to tip her hand. A man like this needed to be taken down a peg. "What do you want with the Kamiya Dojo?" _

_"I'm looking for my baka deshi. You may have heard of him. Himura Kenshin." _

_~What is with that smile? Is he trying to impress me by showing off his looks? What an idiot. I'm a doctor, for crying out loud. I should think it would be pretty obvious that a pretty face alone is not going to cut it with me.~ "What do you want with him?" ~And with me?~_

_"I'm expected." _

_The description of the personality fit, too. "I see." She turned before he could see the little smile that wanted to tease her mouth. He was definitely attractive. She could see why Omasu and Okon were so taken with him. But it would not do to let him know that! She continued on her way, trying not to hope he would follow. And apparently it worked; she could feel his indignation radiating like heat. But she was not the sort of woman to beg forgiveness, especially over such a ridiculous slight as he would perceive this to be. _

_"What do you -" Oh yes, it had worked. His footsteps, normally as stealthy as Kenshin's own, echoed now with his outrage._

_Without looking back or slowing down, and with a toss of her lustrous hair, she kept walking and cut him off mid sentence. "I'm going there myself. Follow me if you insist." _

"Are you attracted to him, Megumikun? Or was it just a weakness of the moment? I don't think that test was for the men alone," Genzai said with a reassuring pat for her as he turned to leave.

"You're lucky that was my shoulder, old man," she said with a warning glare, but he smiled mildly and returned to his own bed.

~All right, so I am attracted to him. Very attracted to him. But it's not like Sanosuke is all that ugly either.~ She pouted at the letter in her hand. She'd burn it in the morning. "Quite probably along with several bridges," she said to herself without humor.

She didn't know what the morning would bring, or any morning thereafter. She hadn't given much thought to what she wanted from a husband, considering that the one man she had fallen for had never been available to her, and she had never entertained expectations of anyone else appearing.

She barely knew Hiko Seijuurou. She wasn't so sure she knew Sagara Sanosuke either. Sano made her feel more at ease these days, but Hiko made her question herself as Sano never had. Ultimately, it would all come down to which of the two men was better suited to being the husband of a doctor such as herself. In the interim, she saw no reason not to enjoy the attention while it lasted.


	13. Chapter 13

_Part XII – I Was Only Kidding_

When the sun cleared the horizon, life in Japan looked no different from normal.

Not too far from Kyoto, a man with dark hair and broad shoulders looked around the small shack he called home. Soon, he would have to go into the city to buy more supplies. Not for the first time, he contemplated finding someone to come by occasionally and clean for him, as well as to bring him supplies and information. Quickly, he dismissed the thought; that was laziness speaking.

He had spent too much time alone of late; dealing with people would do him some good, as much as he might dislike the idea in his current mood. Solitude had become too ingrained into his nature. Perhaps he should visit Kenshin and the others instead.

Making up his mind in that instant, the man quickly packed a light bag, picked up a jug of sake, and headed for Tokyo.

At his intended destination and unaware of his journey, the residents of the Kamiya Dojo were beginning their daily chores. A redheaded man made breakfast, while a woman in a ponytail and a slight young man with dark eyes and spiky hair prepared the dojo proper for their students. A redheaded youth entered with a grouchy expression and a messy ponytail.

"Kenji, stand up straight and fix your hair."

"I'm still tired," he growled.

"That's from sitting up trying to eavesdrop on the grownups til all hours," Yahiko said without sympathy. "Stand up straight before your mother does something about it." He smirked. The preadolescent stood up straight, glowering at his instructor.

Miles to the north, in the region known as Aizu, a flourishing clinic gleamed in the morning sunlight. The owner, a beautiful doctor well known, respected, and admired, opened the doors to let in the first patients of the day. Her husband of nine years and change had already left to pursue his own career for the day. She was not worried; she had several assistants and nurses to help her with the clinic itself and its patients.

"Takanisensei! Good morning!" one of her nurses greeted her. "The appointment roster is posted and don't forget, that new doctor is coming today!"

"Ah, of course," the thirty-seven year old smiled. She looked barely thirty. "The one who they say looks like my father."

"It's all very exciting!" The nurse, who was around Megumi's age, indeed seemed to be as excited as a little girl.

"Well, it will be nice to have another full time physician around here, especially under the circumstances." Megumi's cheeks colored lightly, a pleased smile on her face as she absentmindedly put a hand to her swelling belly.

"And about time, too, with you having three already!" The nurse's scolding held warmth and humor in it.

"I'll have you know I've managed perfectly well until now," Megumi teased right back.

"Oh, no question, Takanisensei! But it will certainly be nice for you to be able to spend more time with your family… Especially that handsome husband of yours!" With a wink and a giggle, the nurse swayed off to do a final check on the examination rooms.

~That is true… How strange, that I've been married nearly ten years. Wait, what's today's date?~ She looked at the calendar on the wall and nearly laughed aloud. ~Ten years ago today was when it all began… The day that Hiko Seijuurou XIII came to visit Kensan and shook up all our lives!~ A smile, grown fond with the pleasant haze of distant memory, flashed back to that first vertiginous day. ~The day I asked two men what they'd want to ask in ten years were we married at that time. Well. Tonight ought to be an interesting night,~ she mused to herself.

Then the first patient came in, and she shoved all such thoughts aside.

The day passed in a pleasant bustle; there were enough patients to keep everyone busy but not so many as to overwhelm the clinic which had grown considerably since first opening its doors nearly fifteen years earlier. Megumi and her staff worked with only brief rests for lunch and slight lulls. Despite the passage of so many years since the Boshin War, the area was still recovering. Much progress had been made, and prosperity no longer turned its back on the region, but it would be some time before it could truly be said to be recovered.

All but the overnight patients had left, and the three nurses who would stay throughout the night should any of them need assistance, when Megumi at last retired to her quarters.

"Hideaki, please come and put your scarf away properly. Aiko, you know you shouldn't be leaving your toys all over the room." The smallest of her three children toddled towards her and she caught him just before he fell. "There you go, Shinjikun. Mommy has you." The child gurgled and tugged on a strand of her hair. She laughed as her older children came in and picked up their belongings. "Come give me hugs," she invited them. The little girl dropped her toys and ran to her mother, seven-year old Hideaki following.

"Mom, Aiko dropped everything!" he whined, trailing his scarf.

"I see. She'll pick it up after I get my hugs, right, Aiko?"

"Uh huh!" the four year old piped up happily.

"Welcome home, wife," said the tall figure behind the children in the doorway.

"Thank you," she said with a smile. Covered in children, she looked as happy as anyone could wish to be.

"Now, go put your things away, you two," she said, chasing the elder two off with a gentle look.

The two adults watched their offspring, as little Shinji demanded to be put down. He utterly adored his eldest brother and followed him everywhere, or at least he tried. When all three had left the room, Megumi raised her eyes at last to her husband's. They wrapped her in his warmth, his strength, and dissolved the little tensions of the day.

"And what did you accomplish today?" she asked him.

"Nothing exciting."

"You never do anything exciting," she said sharply. "If I didn't know better, I'd think you had secrets from me."

"Nothing but secrets, woman," he replied with a superior smirk.

"Just as long as you don't warp our children with your wicked ways," she said severely, the humor in her eyes belying the vulpine tone and arrogant flip of hair.

"I have no intention of doing anything else," he replied archly.

"You do know what today is, don't you?" she countered, changing the subject abruptly. She knew it always made him crazy.

"Today?" He exuded nonchalance, but she could tell that he was desperately trying to remember if it was someone's birthday. He was reasonably sure it wasn't their anniversary – they had married in late spring. This was autumn. So that wasn't it.

~Damn. What am I missing? I don't want to spend the night on the clinic couch tonight...~ He racked his brain as quickly as possible, but nothing came to him.

"Ten years ago," Megumi finally said.

"Ten years… Ah. Yes, of course!" He smiled broadly, but she could tell he still had no idea what she was talking about.

"You idiot," she sighed. "Ten years ago was the night it all began."

Just as she was about to explain to her still-confused spouse, a soft knock came on the door.

"Takanisensei? I'm so very sorry to trouble you, but the new doctor just arrived."

The nurse, a quiet young woman, bowed deeply to the doctor and her husband and stepped aside to let a tall man stepped forward. He stared hard at Megumi, who returned the favor in kind. She'd heard that this man resembled her father, but it was uncanny to see him in front of her like this… He couldn't possibly be!

"Mechan…?"

"Toshihiro-niisama?"

"It IS you!" They exclaimed in unison. Twenty-five years vanished immediately as the tall man, in his early forties, seized the pregnant doctor in a tender embrace. Tears ran down both faces as they babbled like children. Sensing that his presence was not needed, her husband withdrew. His children clustered around him, worried for their mother, until he explained that the doctor who had come was her brother. "Just like you and Aiko, Hideaki, that's her older brother. But when they were little, there was a very big war, and they got separated."

"Poor mommy!" Aiko said, wide-eyed.

"Yes. It was very hard for many people then."

"But it's okay now," Hideaki pointed out with the infinite assurance of his seniority. "He's back."

An indulgent smile spread over their father's face. "Yes, he is back. And mommy is happy. That's all that matters."

Several minutes later, Megumi and Toshihiro, both somewhat calmer, entered the room where the rest of her immediate family waited.

"Toshi-niisama, these are my children." She introduced them to their long lost "Uncle Toshi" with a radiant smile. "And I'd like to introduce you to my husband."

"I have a question for you first," that worthy said with a smirk.

"Oh?" she inquired.

"Yeah. What's for dinner?"

Megumi rolled her eyes, poking her husband in the chest, and smiled. "It seems you're just in time to witness the discovery that even he can learn new tricks, eventually."

"Don't let my wife mislead you," he said with a lofty smile. "If I hadn't informed her of that a long time ago, she might never have figured it out on her own."

Hideaki looked up at the man who had just been introduced as his mother's big brother.

"Mommy and Daddy think they're funny, but nobody else gets their jokes."

"That's okay," Toshihiro said. "When we were little, Megumi didn't even know what a joke was."

Indignation flashed in the woman's eyes. "Don't you go misleading my children, Takani Toshihiro!"

"See?" the newcomer said.

Hideaki giggled. He liked this man. He looked up at his mother. "Daddy's question is good.. What's for dinner?" He wasn't surprised when he didn't understand why his parents looked at one another and could not stop laughing.

"They're so weird," he sighed.

"Weird or not, they are your parents," Megumi's brother pointed out. "You're stuck with them, and they're stuck with each other."

"And no one is more thankful for that than I," Megumi smiled.

"I know of one person who isn't," her husband smirked. Somewhere on the road to Tokyo, near Kyoto, Sagara Sanosuke sneezed and wondered why he'd ever moved in to that damnable shack. He should have stayed in Tokyo, or moved up to Aizu after all.

"Takani Toshihiro, my older brother, please meet my husband. He is better known now as the potter Niitsu Kakunoshin, but I have always known him as Hiko Seijuurou."

"The Thirteenth," he smirked.

"The Thirteenth," she echoed with fond amusement as the men bowed to one another.


End file.
